


Crushes, Collisions, and Conspiracies

by byericacameron



Category: Cut & Run - Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-15
Updated: 2014-10-15
Packaged: 2018-02-21 07:07:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 25,172
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2459327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/byericacameron/pseuds/byericacameron
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kelly expects the dorm's laundry room to be empty at 2am, but it's not. There's a quiet, kinda jumpy guy named Nick and, once they meet, Kelly can't seem to get the guy out of his head.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Last Minute Laundry

_This is what happens when you put it off until the last second_ , Kelly reminded himself as he trudged downstairs to the dorm’s musty basement laundry room. He hated laundry so he always put it off until he was down to about two pairs of boxers and maybe three clean shirts, but he’d been working overtime on a massive paper for his sociology class and hadn’t been paying attention. Now it was two in the morning and he had a presentation the next day and he literally had nothing clean to wear. Hell, he was going down to the basement in flip flops and ratty cargo shorts and nothing else.

The top few floors of the dorm had seemed completely deserted—pretty typical for this time of night on a weekday—so he’d expected the laundry room to be in a similar state. Instead, two of the machines were running and a guy with curly red hair was sitting on top of the dryer with a text book open on his lap, a highlighter between his teeth, and headphones plugging his ears.

Kelly had seen the guy around a couple of times, but only in passing. They didn’t have any of the same classes and Kelly thought this guy might even be a couple years ahead of him. Senior at least if not a grad student. Kelly had just started his sophomore year. His name was something with an N. Kelly wanted to guess Nick, but he could have heard wrong.

Whatever the guy’s name was, it didn’t much matter. He didn’t look up. At least Kelly wasn’t the only one who’d waited until the last second for laundry. It made him feel slightly less like he didn’t know how to manage his own life to see the other guy here.

Not wanting to interrupt his concentration, Kelly moved to the second row of machines, separating out the colors and the whites, depositing the quarters, and letting the things run. Well, one thing to be said for pre-dawn laundry? He didn’t have to fight for machines. And he could run both of his loads at the same time. Bonus. Maybe he actually would get a couple hours of sleep before his first class.

Kelly knew that if he went back to his room he’d fall asleep and miss switching everything to the dryer and then someone would probably just throw all his shit on the floor in the morning and nope. He was stuck. And bored. Already.

For a couple of minutes Kelly tapped out a beat on top of an empty washing machine, but that got dull quick. He started roaming the room then, picking up little things he hadn’t ever paid attention to before. There was a newspaper from two years ago folded up behind an empty box of detergent. Someone had left a pair of underwear behind the trashcan. An aspiring artist had carved intricate geometric designs into the exposed side of one of the machines on the end of the row. On the shelf that ran along one wall Kelly found a pack of bubblegum (expired, unfortunately), ticket stubs from a movie, a small paperback copy of  _Pride & Prejudice_, eighty-three cents, and a composition book.

He picked up the notebook and started flipping through it. Maybe there would be something interesting in here. And, hey. If he recognized the handwriting or found a name, he could always drop it off at the main desk and make sure the person got it back.

“Could you not, please?”

The words shocked Kelly so much the book flew out of his hands and landed with a smack on the concrete floor. The redhead was watching him from his perch on the washing machine, his headphones around his neck and his expression unreadable.

“Not what?” Kelly asked.

“The notebook. That’s mine. I’d just rather you left it alone.”

Oh. Biting his lip guiltily, Kelly picked it up, brushed it off, and placed it exactly where he’d found it.

“Sorry. Thought someone had left it down here. I was going to try to find a name and return it.”

“How very Good Samaritan of you.” The guy had a Boston accent that sharpened the sarcastic edge his words already carried. “What are you even doing down here at this hour?”

Kelly shrugged. “Thought the purpose of the room would make that much obvious.”

Rolling his eyes, the guy shook his head. “No shit. I meant why at two in the morning?”

“Probably the same thing you are. Realized way too late that I don’t have anything to wear tomorrow.”

The guy shook his head. “I always do my laundry at this hour. Every week. It’s easier ‘cause no one’s here.”

“What are you, a vampire? Don’t you sleep?”

“Not a lot.” The guy said it like this was a normal thing. Like people just didn’t sleep.

It didn’t seem like the guy was going to offer any more of an explanation than that so Kelly moved on. For now. “I’m Kelly, by the way.”

Green eyes met his and seemed to be weighing him on some sort of scale. Kelly found himself sort of desperate to know how he measure up in this guy’s eyes.

“I’m Nick.”

Nick. So Kelly had been right. He nodded, smiling. “I’ve seen you around the building before, just never had a chance to say hi.”

“Yeah. Sorry.” Nick looked down at the textbook in his lap, his fingers tracing the edges of the page. “I don’t usually socialize much.”

“Classes kicking your ass? What are you studying?”

Nick glanced up, that careful consideration back in his eyes. Like he was trying to decide if Kelly actually wanted to know or was just asking because that’s what people did when they got stuck talking to strangers. Kelly really did want to know, though. There was something interesting about this quiet, somewhat reclusive, insomniac who did his laundry in the dead of the night.

“I’m a history major with a concentration on America pre-1900.”

“Yeah? I might have to bribe you into proofing my paper later this semester. I get the concepts of that stuff, but the intricacies and the details and the dates and the names?” Kelly shook his head. “I cannot figure out how to keep that shit straight to save my own life.”

Nick’s head tilted slightly and he nodded slowly. “Yeah, sure. I won’t write it for you or anything, but I can check it when you’re done.”

“Write it for me?” Kelly grimaced. “People actually ask you to do that shit?”

“You saying you wouldn’t?”

That careful consideration was back in Nick’s green eyes as Kelly shook his head. “Nah. I never understood that. What’s the point in not figuring out how to do it yourself? Not saying I’ve never cheated, but you don’t bring someone else into that. That’s just messed up.”

Nick seemed to relax a little bit. “Yeah, well, I’ve noticed that most people don’t really have much of a moral compass.”

“Tell me about it,” Kelly muttered. When Nick looked at him with silent questions in his eyes, Kelly shrugged.  “I spent a bunch of years in the foster system after my parents died. My own experiences were fine—I was fucking lucky, man—but I met enough people to know that’s not always the case. There are some messed up people out there.

“Well, it could’ve—” Nick shut his mouth so fast Kelly heard his teeth clack. “I’m sorry you had to live through that.”

“Thanks, I guess, but it’s fine.” Kelly slid his hands into his pockets and smiled. “Everyone’s got a tragedy, man. Some people’s are just closer to the surface than others. No, wait. I like the skeletons analogy better. Everyone’s got skeletons in their closet, but some closets are deeper than others.”

Nick stared at Kelly like he was suddenly talking in Farsi. The silence went on so long that Kelly felt himself blushing—something he swore he hadn’t done in the last five years.

“Never mind. My mouth runs faster than my brain sometimes.” Kelly’s smile turned sheepish and apologetic. “Sorry.”

Nick ran his teeth over his bottom lip and tilted his head slightly, a kind of sideways nod, before lifting his headphones and turning his attention back to his book.

_Conversation over, I guess._

Kelly sighed and returned to roaming, running his hands over the ridges and dents of the machines and staring up at the water-stained ceiling, trying to pick out shapes in the weird discolorations. They were like fucked up clouds, kind of. God this was boring without someone to talk to. If he ever got stuck doing laundry at this hour again, he’d have to bring a book with him like Nick had. Or his laptop so he could watch a DVD. Or something. Anything.

He remembered the paperback of Jane Austen finally and decided why not. He’d never read it before and it was better than circling the room again to stare at rust stains in ceiling tiles. Turning around, Kelly moved back toward the shelf along the wall closest to Nick.

Nick moved before Kelly got to the wall, hopping off the washing machine to grab his notebook off the shelf. He gave Kelly a suspicious look as he passed, one that Kelly purposefully ignored. Reaching up, he picked up the paperback and slowly retreated. Nick was obviously jumpy about that notebook, but all that did was pique Kelly’s curiosity. What could be weird enough that Nick wouldn’t want people seeing it but not so sensitive that he’d put it up on a shelf in a public place?

Figuring he was about as likely to get Nick to show him the notebook as he was to get an A in that history class of his this semester, Kelly paced the room and read. The book wasn’t as cheesy as he thought it was going to be. He kind of got lost in it after a while. Until a voice pulled him out.

“Do you ever stop moving?”

Kelly jumped but managed not to drop the book and lose his place. “I get bored easy.”

“Yeah. I noticed.” Nick shook his head. “Watchin’ you is making me dizzy.

Raising his eyebrows, Kelly stared across the room at the redhead. “Well stop watching then.”

Nick opened his mouth, but must’ve changed his mind because whatever he’d been about to say didn’t come out. He shook his head and muttered instead, “Never mind.”  

“Are you always this grumpy?” Kelly asked, crossing his arms and watching Nick’s reaction carefully.

“I’m not grumpy.”

Kelly wrinkled his nose. “You kinda are.”

“It’s two in the morning!” Nick looked absolutely perplexed, like he wasn’t even sure why they were talking to each other.

“Yeah. What does that have to do with your grump?”

Nick sighed. “Whatever, kid.”

“I’m not a kid. I’m probably not much younger than you.”

“Doesn’t mean you’re not a kid,” Nick grumbled.

Then the timer on Nick’s dryer went off.

Kelly closed his lips on the argument he’d been about to make—that anyone who spent half of their childhood in foster care was  _not_  a child anymore. Instead, he watched Nick jump from the washing machine and hastily pull all of his clothes from the dryer. His movements didn’t have the same careful caution that he’d seemed to carry with him earlier and Kelly’s stomach clenched with the realization that Nick was probably trying to get out of here as fast as possible.

Trying to get away from  _Kelly_  as fast as possible.

Turning away, Kelly rubbed the back of his neck with one hand, trying to think. Sometimes Kelly said shit that was unintentionally offensive or insulting. He’d gotten better at stopping his tongue, but no one was perfect. He slipped up sometimes. Had that happened here? Kelly went back over the few words he’d exchanged with Nick, searching for alternate interpretations that would make it imperative for the bigger guy to GTFO.

Whatever. People aren’t always going to like you. That was something his parents—and then his foster parents—had told Kelly again and again. It didn’t seem to matter.  _Most_  people liked Kelly, so when someone didn’t he had a hard time understanding why. If Kelly did something cruel or rude or had accidentally run over their cat with his car or something, fine. That kind of dislike Kelly could understand. But this? Kelly hadn’t bothered Nick unnecessarily or insulted him or anything. Why was Nick now running for the door like he wanted to be literally  _anywhere_  else?

“See ya around, Nick,” Kelly called.

Nick stumble-stepped to a halt, glancing over his shoulder. There was a second when Kelly could’ve sworn he was going to say something important, but all he got was, “Yep.”

Kelly watched the redhead go, torn between wanting to throw something at the back of his head just to antagonize him and the urge to give the guy a hug. Something told Kelly it had been a long while since anyone had given Nick a hug. And maybe even longer since he’d let them.

A huge part of Kelly’s mind wondered what it would take for a guy like that to trust him enough to let him that close.

It really was a shame Kelly probably wouldn’t see him again. 


	2. Curiosity and Conspiracies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once again leaving it to the last minute, Kelly walks into the laundry room hoping Nick might be there. He's not, but he did leave something interesting behind.

“I am never going to learn,” Kelly muttered to himself as he lugged his overflowing laundry basket down to the basement at two in the morning. Again.

Okay so maybe he could have done laundry two days ago at a normal hour and maybe he’d purposefully put it off until Wednesday at two on the off chance that Nick would be there and maybe this was really fucking ludicrous because he was pretty sure the guy was going to think Kelly was a stalker or something. He wasn’t. Kelly was just intrigued. Plus, you can never have too many friends, right? 

He pasted a smile on his face and pushed the door open.

The room was empty.

Why was that disappointing? He shouldn’t have even been thinking about Nick, but he had been. The guy was a bit of a puzzle. Observant and intelligent and paranoid and quiet and jumpy as hell and  _what_  was in that notebook of his? Kelly hadn’t seen him at all since that first meeting a couple weeks ago, but Nick had crossed Kelly’s mind every time he saw his laundry basket or read another chapter of Pride & Prejudice or walked into history class or…

Come to think of it, Nick had crossed his mind a lot. He’d barely left Kelly’s mind. And it wasn’t like most things where the more Kelly thought about it the more bored he became. No matter what explanation Kelly came up with for Nick’s behavior and being, it never felt right. That only pulled Kelly deeper into the enigma that was Nicholas O’Flaherty.

Yes. He had a last name now. Kelly had asked his friend Zane about the guy hoping they might have had some classes together. Zane hadn’t even known anything useful except that Nick’s last name was O’Flaherty, that he was originally from Boston (shocker, that one. Really), and that he pretty much kept to himself. Except for some dark-haired guy named Ty that Zane described as “the hottest, craziest fucker on campus.” Nick and Ty were together almost constantly according to Zane. So much so that Zane hadn’t been able to find Ty alone and finally ask him out after months of crushing from afar. Apparently when he wasn’t with Nick, Ty was a ghost. Zane hadn’t been able to track him down anywhere. Kelly had almost regretted asking about Nick after listening to Zane rant about his lust for Ty for half an hour.  _Almost_  regretted it.

That was normal, right? Asking about someone you’d just met was perfectly. It wasn’t weird.

Fuck. Who was he kidding? His level of interest in Nick was weird. It was _really_  weird. What the hell was going on?

Sighing and pushing the whole train of thought off its mental tracks, Kelly let his basket thud to the floor and half-heartedly separated out his whites, tossing them into the machine haphazardly. Once both washers were running, Kelly was bored. Bored and weirdly discontent. He probably wasn’t sleeping enough. This plan to try to talk to Nick, and maybe get him to actually smile, was stupid. Nick probably wouldn’t appreciate Kelly butting into his life any more than he’d appreciated Kelly picking up that stupid notebook last time.

He’d started to wander in aimless, winding paths around the basement, but he stopped when he saw something sticking out from behind one of the machines. A composition book. A very familiar composition book.

Fingers tingling with anticipation, Kelly reached out and carefully pulled the book out of the crevice it had fallen into. He recognized the little symbols drawn on the front and bit the inside of his cheek as his conscience waged war with his curiosity.

Nick had  _not_  wanted him to see this. But it was  _right here_. Whatever Nick had in here, it was personal and private and had nothing to do with Kelly. But Kelly was  _holding it in his hands_. Like, right now. However, the right thing to do would be to return it. Especially if Kelly every wanted to get Nick to talk to him again. But…

Fuck it. Kelly didn’t even know why he was hesitating. He already knew which side of himself was going to win.

Hopping up on the nearest washing machine, Kelly opened the book to the first page.

At first, Kelly thought these were notes for a paper Nick was writing. There were citations and page numbers and library reference codes and some sort of short hand in the margins that Kelly couldn’t make out. It only took about five pages of reading the close-packed, blocky handwriting for the truth to sink in.

This was Nick’s conspiracy theory book. And holy fuck had Nick spent a lot of time research, analyzing, and reconsidering conspiracy theories.

There were notes on the ones everyone knew about—Area 51, the J.F.K. assassination, the fake moon landing scenario—but mixed in with those (and somehow connected to them) were others Kelly had never heard of or considered. Like the one where Rome and the Vatican were actually the current seat of power for the Antichrist. Or the poisoning of a race horse named Phar Lap by mobsters back in 1932. Or that there was actually a bomb in existence capable of creating an earthquake and that it has already been used on unsuspecting populaces.

It was incredible. The details were all there, laid out in ways Kelly had never considered. It all seemed perfectly logical (and downright obvious) when he read it in Nick’s clear, concise notes and his straightforward print. Kelly was sitting cross-legged on the machine, biting on his thumbnail, completely engrossed, when the book was torn out of his hands.

“What the fuck, man?” Nick looked pissed and he clutched the composition book in clenched fists. But Kelly’s mind was spinning with all the stories he read and all of Nick’s little side notes and he must’ve completely lost control of his tongue because he blurted out, “Do you really think that there are monitoring devices in the digital cable system? Because, dude, that makes one-thousand-percent sense. How else do they know what we’re watching? But what do you think they do with all of that information? Do you have a theory on that one? Can I read the rest of it? I was just getting to the good parts!”

Nick’s jaw dropped, but he shut it fast. He couldn’t erase the disbelief and confusion from his face as quickly, though. “You…what?”

“No, seriously, listen for a second.” Kelly slid off the machine and stood in front of Nick, bouncing on his toes. “Wait, forget that. How close do you think  _Fahrenheit 451_  or  _1984_  really were? Do you think that’s where we’re headed? Or, no. Have you ever read “Harrison Bergeron” by Vonnegut? Because that? Dude. That seems totally possible and it scares the hell out of me. Maybe you and I will be dead by the time any of it gets really bad and we won’t have to worry about it. But then, shit… if we ever have kids we’ll be leaving them a pretty fucked up mess, you know?”  

Kelly paused for breath and looked up at Nick. Only then did he notice the too-quick blinks of Nick’s eyes or the way his jaw tensed and relaxed like the words just wouldn’t come. Nick was still holding on to his notebook way too tight and Kelly felt absolutely stupid for not seeing Nick’s shellshock sooner.

Clamping down on the questions spinning through his head—and strictly vetoing the vague idea he’d had to ask Nick if he could keep reading—Kelly sighed and stepped back, giving Nick some room.

“Sorry.” He felt deflated and even more disappointed than when he’d found the room empty to begin with. “Curiosity is kind of my besetting sin and sometimes I just can’t keep from sticking my nose where it doesn’t belong.” Kelly shrugged and ran a hand over his dirty-blond hair. “I swear I was gonna return it to you.”

Nick looked down at his notebook like he’d completely forgotten it was there. “It’s…it’s fine.”

“You don’t have to let me off the hook, man. I knew you didn’t want people messing with your shit and I picked it up anyway. I just…” Kelly shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “I shouldn’t have opened it and I  _know_  I shouldn’t have opened it but I did it anyway and I’m kind of sorry, but I’m also pretty sure I’d do the same thing if I had a re-do.”

Then something completely unexpected happened. Nick’s shoulders relaxed and the corner of his lip twitched, curving up  _just_  enough for Kelly to convince himself it was an attempt at a smile. Still looking down, Nick ran his hand over the cover of the composition book. “You really don’t think it’s insane?”

“Are you also forming a militia and covering your head with tinfoil when you sleep and planning to either overthrow the government or hide in some over-militarized compound for the rest of your life?”

“What?” Nick’s head came up fast, complete confusion on his face. “Hell, no.”

“Well then I don’t think it’s insane. That other shit would be insane—taking it way too far—but this,” Kelly waved a hand at Nick’s book. “This is just being  _aware_ , dude. I’ve learned well that people in power are usually psychos. You put a bunch of psychos in power and guess what? Some of that conspiracy shit sounds a lot more like fact than fiction.”

Nick exhaled slowly, a long half-sigh that seemed to help him uncoil. He still seemed tense and jumpy, but it was more like the way he was that first night rather than how completely defensive and enraged he’d been a few minutes ago. Turning the book over in his hands, Nick watched Kelly, seeming to consider something.

“Here.” Nick held out his hand, notebook laid out flat on his palm like an offering.

Kelly hesitated. “Is this a trap? Are you going to bite my head off if I take it?”

“It’s not a trap.” A little of that tension came back, a lot of the uncertainty. “If…if you want to read it, here.”

“Are you sure? Because now I’m suspicious. Why’d you even leave it down here?”

Nick growled something unintelligible. “I didn’t  _leave_  it. I dropped it. I put it on top of my laundry basket when I left and it must’ve fallen off and I came back looking for it as soon as I realized it was gone. Do you want to read it or not?”

“Oh. Um, yes.” Before Nick could change his mind, Kelly took the book. “Why are you letting me read this now?

“’Cause you actually want to,” Nick said on a resigned exhale. “And ‘cause you didn’t give me shit for it when you saw what was in there.”

“People do that a lot?”

Nick shrugged, but he didn’t quite achieve the nonchalance Kelly was pretty sure he’d been aiming for. “Sometimes.”

“I’m convinced Big Foot is real.” The words were out and  _then_  Kelly heard them in his head, heard how fucking random that sounded. But he had a point and, dammit, he was going to make it. “And some people I knew growing up refused to believe that evolution was more than a theory and there was this one kid I knew who was absolutely  _convinced_  that if he fell asleep in a room with a running fan, he was going to die.” 

“So?” Nick asked.

“So, anyone who gives you shit for something you think is true or false or anything in between probably isn’t worth your time anyway. No two people see the world the same way so why bother trying to judge other people for their perspectives, you know?”

Nick’s head tilted slightly like he felt the need to view Kelly from another angle. “You’re kinda weird, aren’t you?”

“Usually.” Kelly didn’t mind being called weird. Not by Nick. From this guy, it almost sounded like a compliment. Silence settled for a second as Kelly stared down at the notebook in his hands, wondering how hard it had been for Nick to willingly pass it over like that.

“Right. Um, well, I’m on the fourth floor—room 416. Just drop it off when you’re done.”  Even as he said it, Nick looked like he wanted to rip the notebook out of Kelly’s hands and vanish into thin air. Nick turned and took a step toward the door.

Then Nick stopped.

It took Kelly a second to realize that he’d stopped because Kelly had reached out and grabbed his arm.

“Do you have to leave?”

Nick’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”

“Well, I had questions. Some of this is in shorthand and I made as much sense of it as I could, but you were writing it for yourself, you know? It’s coded in Nick-isms.”

“Nick-isms?”

Kelly nodded, slowly releasing Nick’s arm once it seemed like the redhead was gonna stay put. “You definitely have Nick-isms.”

Nick stared at Kelly for a moment, those bright green eyes boring into his. Finally, Nick ran his thumb across his lips and nodded.

“All right. Fine. What’d you wanna know?”

Kelly grinned and opened to page one. What did Kelly want to know? Everything. Everything about these theories and everything about Nick and everything about everything, really. The problem was figuring out where to start.

At least Nick was willing to stay and talk to him. That had to be something, right?

When they finally left the basement three hours later as dawn was just beginning to appear in the narrow slits of windows this room had, Kelly decided that, yes. Nick staying that long to talk to him, the way his eyes lit up when Nick got into a passionate argument about one of his theories, and the way Nick had almost smiled when they’d said goodnight (or good morning?)—yep. That was definitely something. 


	3. Matchmaker, Matchmaker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asking Kelly's friend Zane about Nick gave Kelly a lot of useless information about Nick's friend Ty. Not helpful for Kelly's curiosity about Nick, but maybe he could find a way to help their friends.

After that long conversation about conspiracies and government control and how much of the privacy the world thought they had was an illusion, Kelly started seeing Nick in daylight. They never spoke, but Kelly spotted Nick on campus several times over the next two weeks. Always in passing and always when Kelly was running late for a class or a meeting or a club.  Only once had he been able to catch Nick’s eye and wave, mostly because every single time Kelly saw him, Nick was too focused on his dark-haired friend Ty to notice anything else going on around him.

Besides the obvious coloring differences—Nick’s bright red hair and pale skin to Ty’s dark scruffy look and his tan skin—they were an odd pair. At least, they were from everything Kelly had heard about them both from Zane. And Owen. And Eli. And a few other people that he  _may_  have pestered for insider information. Ty was brash and loud where Nick was contemplative and quiet. Ty was quick to attack both physically and verbally while Nick had a reputation for long stretches of silent, simmering anger until he erupted with the force of Vesuvius. Ty was a flirt while Nick hovered on the sidelines. According to Kelly’s sources, it wasn’t that Nick _didn’t_  flirt, just that his attention was a lot more targeted. Ty cast a net. Nick threw out a very well placed hook. Both of them always caught what they went after.

One thing all of Kelly’s friends agreed on was that Tyler Grady and Nick O’Flaherty were inseparable, a fact that still pissed Zane off to no end for some reason. Kelly tried not to judge people before he met them, but he had to say that something about Ty struck him the wrong way. Or, no. That wasn’t right. There was nothing wrong with Ty exactly, it was more that Kelly didn’t really think that Ty was good for Nick. Ty seemed to overwhelm Nick completely. No one could tell him much of anything about Nick that wasn’t in opposition to an observation about Ty.

Which just sounded weird when he let himself think it. Nick was a grown ass man and knew how to pick his own friends. Kelly was being stupid.

Excessively stupid.

Of course, he only fully acknowledged any of this to himself when he found himself heading down to do laundry at two in the morning again.

This time, Nick was there.

“Hey.” Kelly grinned when Nick looked up from the textbook in its usual place. “How you been?”

Nick pulled his headphones off, letting them sit around his neck. “Sorry, what?”

“I just said hi and how are you.”

“I’m fine.”

Grinning at his own memories, Kelly asked, “Know what my parents used to tell me fine actually stands for?”

“Stands for?” Nick looked understandably confused.

“Yeah. F-I-N-E. Fucked up, insecure, neurotic, and emotional.”

Nick’s mouth pulled to the right slightly. “You go around quoting Aerosmith a lot?”

“No, but I quote  _The Italian Job_  all the time.” Kelly made a conscious decision to crowd Nick a little tonight and moved toward the washers closet to him instead of using the ones on the next row. Nick raised an eyebrow when Kelly dropped his basket almost at Nick’s feet, but didn’t offer a comment. He also didn’t tell Kelly to vacate the premises either, so that was probably as close to a win as Kelly was gonna get.

Once his two machines were running, Kelly hopped on top of the one next to Nick and started swinging his legs just enough to make his heels thump against the side.

“I swear to god you act like your five sometimes.” Nick shook his head, but he said it with a very slight chuckle.

Kelly shrugged. “My friends tell me that all the time.”

“Really? Shocking.”

“What’s the alternative? Acting like an adult? Being all uptight and overly responsible and repressed and—” Kelly shuddered. “Fuck no.”

“Sometimes you don’t have a choice but to grow up,” Nick said, his tone even and the words careful.

“Nah.” Kelly shook his head. “Growing up is a choice.”

Nick blinked and leaned a little closer. “How d’ya figure?”

“Well, growing up and being independent—taking care of your own life and whatever—those are two separate concepts that people have somehow wound together into one thing.” Kelly placed his hands out in front of him, palms up. “On the one hand you have the ability to enjoy life and take pleasure in stupid little things like open washing machines when you need to do laundry. On the other you have stress and depression and the rat race for power that means nothing and has never made  _anyone_  who has it happy from what I can tell.”

Kelly glanced at Nick to make sure he was still paying attention. Nick’s expression was carefully blank, but his green-eyed gaze was intently focused on Kelly.

_Good enough_ , Kelly thought.

“You can be ‘adult’ and ‘responsible’ and still enjoy the few years you have on this planet or you can do the same things but take them so seriously that you hate your own existence.” Kelly raised his eyebrows and threw his hands up. “I mean, come on! Which one would you pick?”

“Some of my friends would call you insane but, I dunno.” Nick shrugged, watching Kelly out the corner of his eye. “Kind of makes sense.”

That statement sparked an idea in Kelly’s head. “Oh, hey, speaking of your friends, is Ty into guys?”

Nick’s head jerked back and his eyes widened for a second before his nostrils flared and his lips curled—and  _not_  in a smile. “Sometimes.”

Oh, good. That solved one problem at least. “Do you know Zane Garrett?” Kelly asked.

Nick shrugged, the curl of his lip fading. Now he just looked confused. “Know  _of_  him. Seen him around.”

“Well, he’s a friend of mine and I’m kind of getting sick of listening to him bitch about his unrequited crush on Ty and so yeah.” Kelly smiled suggestively at Nick. “Think Ty might be interested?”

Nick laughed. A full-out laugh that Kelly had never thought he would hear. It was a beautiful sound, but not nearly as gorgeous as the near-full smile that graced Nick’s lips and crinkled the corners of his eyes. “I think he could be talked into something.”

“Yeah?” Kelly sighed, relief almost making him dizzy. He’d only realized after he started this conversation that Nick could easily be one of those guys who’d take offence at even the mention of something slightly gay. “It’d be a huge help. If I have to hear one more discussion about whether or not Ty is more crazy or more hot, I might shoot Zane. Or Ty if I can find him.”

That wider-than-usual smile was still on Nick’s lips. “Ty is both. Usually it’s about equal, but he has days where the crazy wins out.”

Kelly shrugged and said, “Everyone is at least a little crazy,” but most of his mind was busy analyzing the weird feeling in the center of his chest that had popped up out of nowhere when Nick agreed that Ty was hot. Cause Nick was always with Ty. And if Nick thought Ty was hot then maybe Zane would have competition. And his friend was totally lost over Tyler Grady.

Worry for his friend. That’s what the feeling was. Worry. Maybe.

“You okay?”

Nick’s question made Kelly jump. “What? Oh. Yeah, sorry. I got lost in my head for a second.”

“You do that a lot,” Nick said, a teasing light in his eyes. “Your mind must be fuckin’ labyrinthine.”

“Did you know you sound even more Bostonian when you smile? Practically Irish.” Kelly laughed at the slightly pink tinge on Nick’s cheeks and the suddenly sheepish expression on his face. “Irish! I am totally calling you Irish from now on.”

Luckily, Nick shrugged. “Had worse nicknames over the years.”

Kelly cracked up even more. “Oh God.  _Nick names_!”

“You’re an idiot, Kels.” The way Nick said it was almost fond, so Kelly didn’t care. Besides, he was still too busy laughing to care.

“But  _NICK NAMES_!” He gasped for breath. “Why didn’t I ever notice that before? I would’ve given you a hundred of them by now!”

Nick shook his head. “Then I’m kinda glad you didn’t.”

“Irish, Red, O, Nick-O, God the list is endless!”

Nick rolled his eyes and ran his thumb over his lips, but Kelly got the feeling it was to hide a smile. “You start callin’ me Red and I might have to knock you out, Kels.”

Kelly blinked, his grin turning sly when he realized what Nick had called him. “Kels?”

Rolling his lips between his teeth, Nick wiggled his head and shifted his shoulders in a way that couldn’t quite decide if it was a shrug or a nod. The guy was  _obviously_  embarrassed, his cheeks starting to flush, so Kelly took pity on him and didn’t press the issue.

“All right, fine,” Kelly said, slowly getting his breathing back to normal. “Because you gave me the first  _nick_ name I’ve ever had, you get that  _one_ veto. I’m keeping the rest, O’Flaherty.”

Nick began to nod, but then he blinked. “How’d you know my last name?”

“Oh.” Kelly waved his hand, brushing that piece of information away. “Zane told me a while ago when I asked if he knew you.”

There was a beat of silence. “You were asking Zane about me?”

“Kind of. I asked if he knew you and that’s what started all of the Ty-rants I’ve been subjected to the past few weeks. He didn’t know much about you but holy shit is he obsessed with your friend.”

Nick’s eyebrows furrowed. “Not so sure I should hook them up, then. He sounds like a creeper.” 

“Nah. He’s just pissed that he never sees Ty to ask him out without you hanging around.” Kelly smirked. “For a while he thought you guys were a couple.”

Huffing, Nick looked away. Kelly saw his lips move but barely heard what he said. Could’ve sworn it sounded like, “Not anymore.” 

Before Kelly could ask him what he’d meant, Nick picked up his conspiracy book and held it out to Kelly.

“Another lesson?”

Nick shook his head. “Write down your email address and I’ll talk to Ty.”

Kelly snorted, pulled a pen out of his pocket, and wrote down his name, phone number, email address, and room number on the inside back cover of the book.

“Let me know how it goes and maybe I can meet your friend in person instead of only hearing stories about him.” Kelly smirked. “I’m starting to think he’s a figment of our collective imaginations.”

“Ty is now a shared hallucination?” Nick chuckled. “I’ll let him know you said that.”

“Go ahead.” Kelly held out the composition book, but held on to the corner when Nick tried to take it back. “You’re actually going to talk to him, right? And let me know if you need help pushing the two idiots together?”

Nick pulled the book out of Kelly’s hand, the corner of his lip twitching. “Maybe.”

“I expect results, Nicko,” Kelly said, mock glaring at him. “Or I’ll take matters into my own hands.”

“Lord forbid.” The curve to Nick’s lip became more pronounced until Kelly could almost call it a smile. Well, a quarter of a smile, anyway. “I’ll see what I can do, Kels.”

“Good enough, I guess.”

Kelly smiled and Nick stayed with him in the basement until Kelly’s laundry was done and when Kelly was lying in his bed in the pre-dawn light he was, strangely enough, still smiling.

He was just happy for Zane. That had to be it. It looked like Zane might finally get a chance with the guy he’d been lusting after for months. Vicarious happiness. That was what his smile was about.

Wasn’t it? 


	4. Dredging up Old Demons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last thing Nick wants to do is get involved in Ty Grady's love life--he barely survived his last dive into that world--but that might be an easier conversation than finally facing Grady and telling him why everything between them blew up years ago.

“Where’d you disappear to last night?” Nick asked as Ty collapsed onto the end of Nick’s bed. He looked completely burnt out and Nick was starting to get worried. Their breakup had been ugly, but it had also been three years ago. It had taken until last year for Nick to somewhat forgive Ty for some of the shit they’d slung in that last fight. Nick had said some regrettable things, but Ty… Ty had hit below the belt with a sledgehammer and he’d known it.

That had been the worst part. He’d  _known_  exactly what he was doing to Nick when he brought up Nick’s dad and his sisters and all the shit Nick had been so desperate to leave behind when he’d accepted the scholarship to an out-of-state school. The school Ty had refused to follow him to. Even though they’d  _both_  gotten scholarships.

Ty had apologized after their fight and Nick had accepted, but it hadn’t mattered. Nick couldn’t forget what Ty had said and he sure as hell wasn’t ready to forgive and maybe it would’ve been okay sooner if Ty had followed Nick to Colorado their freshman year, but he hadn’t. He’d stayed in Massachusetts.

Their texts and emails and phone calls had been sporadic and perfunctory for those years, enough to check in and make sure the other was alive, but not much more than that. Nick never asked if Ty was seeing anyone because, despite everything, he still had feelings for the fucker and he didn’t want to know if and when Ty found someone else. Someone Ty actually  _would_  change plans for.

Then Ty had transferred in to Nick’s school without a word to Nick. Their junior year. Ty changed majors, changed schools, changed time zones, changed haircuts, changed just about everything, and even though he never told Nick why (not a reason Nick believed anyway), it had always felt to Nick like he was trying to escape something. Maybe himself.

Their relationship had slowly mended—mostly because of Ty’s fucking irresistible persistence—but they’d never even tried to pick up where they’d left off. Nick couldn’t stand the heartbreak if it ended the same way twice and Ty… Well, Ty had never come close to broaching the subject. He wasn’t even as touchy-feely with Nick as he had been in the years before they’d started dating and it was that combined with a few other things that made Nick keep a close watch on Ty, looking for signs of what had happened to him while he’d been gone and searching for signals that his friend was losing grip of the edge it seemed like he was hanging on to.

In the past year, Nick had never seen him look this close to that edge.

“It was nothing.” Ty shook his head, the movements so slow they were almost imperceptible. “I’m just tired is all, man.”

“This is more than tired, Tyler.” Nick bit his tongue against saying more. He would have years ago, but now? Now he still felt like he had to be careful about what lines he crossed and which fights he picked. Because they were friends but nothing more and Nick didn’t like not knowing what to say.

 _You never have that problem with Kelly_.

Because Kelly was nothing like Ty.

_And that’s probably a good thing considering what happened with Ty, huh?_

Not necessarily. And Kelly might not even be into guys.

_He asked Zane about you. He watches for you when he’s out on campus._

Because Kelly’s friendly. Overly so. He’s nice to everyone.

_But he doesn’t watch everyone like he watches you. Not even Ty ever watched you like that._

A hand landed on his arm with a loud smack. “If you’re going to space out when I tell you shit then you don’t get to wonder why I never tell you shit!”

Ty’d said something? Nick  _always_  heard Ty. Even when he wanted to be able to tune him out, Nick heard Ty. Like he was fucking locked on to Ty’s frequency. His voice had always been one of the few things to snap Nick out of the fugue states he fell into.

Until Nick got caught up thinking about Kels, apparently.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to space.” Nick shrugged.

Ty sighed and shook his head. “I think we both need to get laid, Lucky.”  

The first time Ty had said that upon his arrival in Colorado, Nick had gone into a mental tailspin, freaking out because he wasn’t sure if Ty had meant _together_  or just in general or what. Eventually they’d fallen into a rhythm, one that only slowly become less excruciating for Nick. They went out, Ty flirted with the entire bar or club like he was Bacchus and the party was in his honor, and Nick followed him around, waiting until Ty was locked on to his final prey for the night before looking for his own. None of it helped Nick erase the fear that Ty was still running from something and that everything else—sex, school, even Nick—was a distraction.

Whatever. He’d stopped trying to control Ty years ago.

Tonight, when he thought about going out and finding someone, the first face that rose in front of his eyes had changeable blue-green-gray eyes and shaggy blond hair and an impish smile that hid a quick, open mind and wow did that face hold more appeal that whatever stranger Nick could find in the shadows of a club.

That face also reminded Nick of the little bit of news Kelly had passed on a few days ago.

“Laid, huh? I might be able to help with that.” Ty’s eyebrows shot up and Nick cringed, shaking his head fast. “Not like that. Not what I meant.”

“Oh.” Nick honestly couldn’t tell if Ty was relieved or disappointed. “Well what  _did_  you mean, Lucky?”

“Just that I heard a bit of news you may or may not find interesting.”

Ty perked up. “News that will help me get laid?”

“If you want.”

“Well, color me intrigued. Go on, then.”

“You know Zane?”

“Garrett?” Ty’s head cocked to the side. “Ridiculously tall, scowl to rival yours, dark hair, nice ass.”

“Uh, yeah.” Nick wasn’t sure what threw him more—the scowl comment or the ass one. Nick really,  _really_  should be over hearing Ty talk about other guys by now but somehow… nope. “I have it from a reliable source that he’s been trying to ask you out for months but he can’t ever seem to catch you without an entourage.”

“An entourage?” Ty scoffed. “I only ever hang out with you.”

Nick ran his fingers over his lips and shrugged. “Yeah, well, apparently I qualify.”

“Seems like a wimp to me if he’s letting little old you scare him off.” Ty’s nose wrinkled and he shook his head.

Ty hated anything that hinted of cowardice. Anything. Nick knew that he wouldn’t give Zane a chance unless he could come up with some other explanation for Zane’s behavior. And he had one, Nick just hadn’t been planning on using it.

Sighing, he gave in. “In his defense, he did think we were dating for a long while.”

“Oh.” Ty swallowed and nodded, his eyes landing anywhere but Nick’s face. “Yeah I guess I can see how he might think that.”

“Then after that he only ever heard about the girls you’ve been chasing and he didn’t want to make an ass of himself asking someone out who was apparently, and notably straight,” Nick added. He  _almost_  kept every bit of bitterness out of his voice when he said that. Not like it mattered who Ty went after. Guys or girls, it still wasn’t going to be Nick. 

“Huh.” Ty leaned against the wall, his eyes going distant. “Zane Garrett. Isn’t he dating that girl? The brunette with the loose curls and the obnoxious laugh.”

So Ty had been paying pretty close attention to Zane too huh? Not just close attention, close enough that he knew who Zane was dating and harbored at least a little resentment on the subject. Interesting. It boded well for Zane. Maybe Nick wouldn’t have to drag Kelly into this mess after all.

“I don’t know her but I don’t think he’s dating anyone.”

“You don’t?” Ty stared off into the middle distance for a second before his eyebrows furrowed. “Who was your source?”

“A friend of his.” Nick hesitated for a second, holding Kelly’s name on his tongue and, for some reason, not wanting to share it. But Ty was watching him expectantly and Nick relented. “Kelly Abbott.”

The considering look came back on his face. “The little blond underclassman that’s always trailing Zane like a puppy?”

“Kelly’s  _not_  a puppy.” The words had been snapped out before they’d even registered in his brain.

Ty’s eyes widened before a slow grin spread across his face. “Nicko. Babe. Do you have a crush on the little blond boy? I didn’t think you went for the short ones.”

Nick could feel his face heating. “He’s not that short.”

He kinda was though.

“He kinda is though,” Ty said, unknowingly parroting Nick’s thoughts.

Grunting, Nick shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. It’s not the point. He never said anything about Zane dating anyone and I really don’t think he’d be trying to hook Zane up if he was in a serious relationship with someone. He doesn’t seem like the type to go for that sort of thing.”

“Well that’s something at least. And what do you mean it doesn’t matter? You have a crush! Of course it matters!” Ty pushed to his knees and pressed into Nick’s personal space, grabbing Nick’s cheeks and planting a kiss on his forehead. “Nicko, this is awesome. This is huge and a good thing. Why are you not happier about this?”

Nick closed his eyes. “Because I’m about eighty-five percent sure he’s straight.”

Ty’s hands dropped to Nick’s shoulders. “Shit.”

Letting his head drop back against the headboard, Nick sighed. “Pretty much.”

“Well, why? Tell me what happened.”

Nick shook his head. “It doesn’t matter, Ty.”

“Nick.”

Nick didn’t move or respond. Usually Ty dropped the subject and moved away. Tonight, Ty’s fingers tightened on Nick’s shoulders until his nails were digging into his skin through his thin shirt.

“Nick O’Flaherty, look at me.”

Reluctantly, and ready for at least a short guilt trip, Nick opened his eyes.

“Nick, it’s you. Of course it’s important.” Ty sat practically straddling Nick, his hands still on Nick’s shoulders and his eyes boring into Nick’s, but there was nothing even remotely sexual about it. For the first time in years—since even before their breakup—Nick felt like he actually had Ty’s attention. Full, complete, and undivided. He felt like if he talked, Tyler Grady might listen.

“I want to know if you want to tell me, Lucky,” Ty said, his voice quiet and serious. More serious than Nick had heard in years. “I’m sorry if you don’t know that.”

 _Might as well_ , Nick thought. Ty had a gift for reading people, even when he only heard about them through other people’s descriptions. Maybe he’d pick up on something Nick had missed and could say definitively one way or the other what Nick’s chance with Kelly might be.

It wasn’t until he’d started talking that Nick realized how  _desperately_  he’d wanted to tell someone about Kelly. About that first night and how Kelly had put up with Nick’s grumpiness, how he’d even called Nick on it. He wanted to talk to someone about the next time he saw Kelly and how pissed and  _petrified_  he’d been seeing his notebook in Kelly’s lap, the same notebook his father and so many others had ridiculed him for keeping. Even Ty had never got Nick’s fascination with conspiracies. But the feeling when Kelly had jumped up spouting question after question—all legitimate and all well thought out… Nick had wanted to grab Kelly and kiss him right there. Only fear of Kelly’s reaction had stopped Nick. But then the next time? With the questions about Ty liking guys and the hints about Kelly poking around campus for information on Nick? It was so hard to beat down the hope that maybe,  _maybe_  Kelly might be interested.

He poured it all out in broken stories and disjoined comments and the rambling inner monologue that Kelly had been completely unaware of. Ty knew how Nick’s mind worked, though, and he managed to keep pace, only nudging Nick back on course a couple of times or asking a couple of questions to clarify something Nick had left out.

When Nick finally ran out of words, he felt a little empty and Ty looked a little shell-shocked.

“Jesus, Lucky. That’s quite a crush you’ve been building.” Ty had moved to the opposite end of the bed and they sat there facing each other across Nick’s pathetically small twin mattress.

Nick lifted his hands, helpless. He’d tried to fight it, he really had, but it had become an avalanche in his head, picking up everything in its path and only gaining speed.

“I say you ask the guy out.”

Laughing, Nick dropped his head into his hands. “I don’t even know if he’s bi!”

“Well, asking him would be one way to find out.”

“And one way to completely alienate him if he’s not,” Nick shot back, dropping his hands.

Ty’s expression hardened. “If getting asked out by a guy would make him break off a friendship then fuck him. You don’t need someone like him around anyway.”

Shit. Ty was right. Nick  _knew_  that Ty was right. But it didn’t make the fear that if he acted on the impulse to grab Kelly and hold him close—or even on the much less creepy impulse to take the guy to dinner—he’d never see Kelly again. Never see those bright eyes or hear his amazing laugh or watch his face light up when he told a story or listen to him find the silver lining in every-fucking-thing. Nick might lose all of that and that possibility made him hesitate.

Was it worth it? Was the chance for more worth the risk of nothing?

“Maybe,” Nick finally said. “We’ll see.”

Maybe Kelly would come in to the laundry room wearing a bi-pride shirt next time and put Nick out of his misery.

“So, are you willing to talk to Zane or what?” Nick asked, more than ready to give up the center of attention.

The smile that spread across Ty’s face was practically lecherous. “Oh, I already think we’re going to do more than talk.”

Nick frowned. “Don’t use this guy for sex, Ty.”

“What?” Ty blinked at Nick, shock on his face.

“You heard me. This guy likes you. Actually likes you, crazy and all. Don’t turn this into an addition to your string of one night stands,” Nick warned. “This guy is Kelly’s friend and he’s already in deep and he doesn’t deserve for you to pull a fuck and run on him, all right?”

Creases formed around Ty’s eyes and furrows lines his forehead. “I wouldn’t—”

“But you  _have_  Ty. That’s  _all_  you’ve been doing since you got here and fine. Whatever. If that’s what you want to do and the other person is up for it—” Nick held both hands out. “Whatever, man. Do what you gotta do. But I can guaran-damn-tee you that whatever the hell you’ve been running from the past few years? You ain’t gonna make it any better by sleeping your way through campus and you’re sure as shit not going to make it any better by hurting someone who might actually care about you.”

Fuck. Apparently once Nick started telling Ty what was on his mind, he didn’t know how to shut it off again.

Ty stared at him, shock and hurt and confusion playing across his face. “Is that what you think I’ve been doing, Lucky?”

Nick fought the urge to slam his head against the wall until he blacked out. He had a feeling that would be less painful than the conversation he’d just opened up. But he’d started it and fuck if Ty was going to have a reason to call him a coward for not facing it. “The running thing or the fucking through campus thing?”

The sound Ty made sounded like a wounded animal. “Both. Either. I don’t know.”

Sighing, Nick shrugged. “Yeah, Ty. That’s what it seems like you’ve been doing. Something happened those first two years of school. You don’t want to tell me and that’s fine, you don’t have to, but whatever it is fucked with your head, man. The you who showed up here isn’t the guy I remember. It’s like you’re pretending to be him but you kinda forgot how to play the part.”

The silence that followed was leaden and so absolute that Nick could hear it when Ty swallowed.

“I didn’t want to hurt anyone.” The words were barely a whisper and Ty couldn’t seem to drag his eyes away from his hands.

“You haven’t, Ty. Like I said, you were playing with people who knew the game and whatever. That’s fine.” Nick rubbed his hands over his face. Ty had rolled in here first thing in the morning. Nick had definitely  _not_  been prepared to deal with this shit today. “I would’ve told you if I thought you were crossing a line. As far as I know, no one got hurt.”

Ty looked up, his eyes laser-focused on Nick and brimming with pain. “You did.”

Nick waved him off. “That happened way before mirrorverse you showed up and wormed your way back into my life.” Nick smiled slightly to take a little bit of the sting out of those words.

It didn’t matter. Ty still sucked in a sharp breath. “I don’t know how else to apologize for that, Nick. I’ve said it all to you a dozen times already and it’s played on repeat in my head for years. I don’t—I can’t…” His fists clenched and he dug them into his eyes. “Dammit, I hate it when you’re right.”

“Right about what?” Nick asked, suddenly wary.

“I’ve been running for years.” Nick opened his mouth to talk, but Ty barreled over him, speed talking with his hands flying and only little hiccups of breath to keep him going. “I was running from myself, from what happened with you, from home—shit, from just about everything. I don’t think there’s one part of my life I haven’t fucked up at some point, Nick, and I guess when it got to the point where I couldn’t stand staying in Massachusetts anymore, I figured that if I was going to be miserable I might at least try to see if I could find a way to apologize to you that would make you stop hating me so much while I was drowning, you know?”

“Ty…” Nick’s throat was clogged and his eyes burned. He reached out and put a hand on Ty’s calf, the only part of him he could reach. “Babe, I don’t hate you. I’ve never hated you. I just didn’t understand why you wouldn’t come with me.”

“I wasn’t ready to leave. I know you had it rough growing up, Nicko. I was there. I saw it. But I loved it at home. I loved that city and our friends and the people and you were so ready so cut anchor and bolt and it felt like you were cutting that whole part of your life off and you weren’t ever going to look back.” Ty swallowed and ran his hand over his hair. “It felt like you were trying to cut me off.”

“I wasn’t,” Nick whispered, not sure what else he could say.

Ty huffed a hoarse laugh. “Yeah. I get that now, I really do. But I was eighteen and egotistical and an idiot and—” He shrugged. “I’d take it back if I could, but…”

He trailed off and searched Nick’s face, but for what Nick wasn’t sure. Nick still wasn’t sure if Ty had found whatever he’d been looking for when Ty shifted his weight, rolling onto his knees and falling forward onto his hands. Ty crawled forward, his expression somehow hesitant and resolute. He stopped when he was a foot or so away from Nick.

“Don’t deck me, Lucky, okay?”

Nick barely had the time to nod before Ty’s hands were in Nick’s hair and Ty’s lips were on his and this was so familiar and so strange and what was he supposed to do with his hands and he probably should punch Ty even though he said he wouldn’t but shit, what the fuck had Ty thought this would accomplish?

Ty pulled away and Nick stared at him, stupefied and a little turned on but mostly annoyed and  _that_  was when it hit him. Like a rocket powered sledgehammer to the chest.

He was finally over Tyler Grady.

 _Holy shit_.

Nick really, honestly, truly hadn’t thought it would ever happen. He thought he’d be carrying around the weight and the memory of Ty for the rest of his life, trying to fit other people into a Ty-shaped hole. But there wasn’t one. There was a dent and some scratches and maybe a few patches left uncovered, but it wasn’t shaped like Tyler anymore. Those scars and bits of damage blended in with all the other’s he’d collected in his life.

“Anything?” Ty asked, still kneeling over Nick’s legs.

Slowly, Nick shook his head. “Mostly I wanted to deck you.”

Ty smiled sadly back. “Well, thank you for not. I’ve been hit by you before, Lucky. You hurt.” There was still too much worry in Ty’s eyes for Nick to think everything was okay, though. “We’re okay, right?”

“Yeah, Ty.” Nick ran his hand over the side of Ty’s face and cupped his neck, drawing him forward until their foreheads touched. “We’re okay.”

“I had to try,” Ty whispered, his voice quivering. “I had to know for sure.”

“I’m kinda glad you did.” Ty looked up at that and Nick nodded, smiling ruefully. “How else would we know, right?”

Ty swallowed and sat up, clearing his throat. “Right.”

For once, Nick saw what Tyler looked like when he was completely at a loss. For words, for actions, for just about everything. Ty sat there—still straddling Nick’s lap—staring at Nick and silently pleading for help.

“So now, what? You go after Zane?”

Ty chewed the inside of his lip and nodded. “I think so.”

“And you  _won’t_  fuck and run?”

Holding up three fingers, Ty nodded. “Scout’s Honor.”

Nick snorted and shoved Ty off his legs. “You got us both kicked out of Scouts, asshole.”

“Oh, right.” Ty laughed, not quite his real laugh but close enough for right now. “But, yeah. I go after Zane and you go after Kelly, right?”

Shit. Nick had hoped Ty would be too distracted by everything else to remember that Nick hadn’t agreed to anything where Kelly was concerned. “Maybe.”

“No.” Ty glared. “I know you. You’ll wiggle out of a maybe. You promise me, Nick.”

Groaning and cursing childhood best-friends and observant ex-boyfriends who knew him too well, Nick hid his face in his pillow. “Ty, leave it alone.”

“No. You like this guy and you’re going to wallow forever if I don’t make you do something, so promise me, Lucky.” Ty grabbed the pillow out of Nick’s grasp and smacked Nick with it. “Promise!”

“All right, moron! Fucking hell.” Nick pushed himself upright and sighed. “I promise that the next time I see him I’ll at least ask him out.”

Ty narrowed his eyes at Nick for a second, but seemed satisfied. “Good. So, now, tell me everything your little blond has told you about Zane.”

Grateful for even the slight reprieve, Nick passed on the few stories he had about Zane. It wasn’t much, but Ty ate up every detail Nick could pass on. While Ty was stewing in plans to approach Zane, Nick was left to contemplate what he’d promised to do the next time he saw Kelly.

Next time he saw Kelly. Shit. After tonight, Nick wasn’t sure if he dreaded or anticipated the occasion anymore. 


	5. Instincts and Kittens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zane never expected Ty to approach him and ask for a date. He's thrilled, but he also knows it's not that simple. Not with someone like Ty Grady.

“Ya know,  _traditionally_ , asking someone a question is the best way to get an answer from them.”

Zane’s hands froze on the keyboard of his laptop as that voice with the beautifully strange drawl that somehow mixed the South with Boston shot chills down his spine.

“But I guess neither of us are quite traditional, eh, Lone Star?”

Tyler Grady slid into the seat across from Zane, his motions lithe and somehow sinuous even though all he was doing was sitting down. Zane let himself watch (since this was only the fifth or sixth time he’d ever seen Ty up close), but held his tongue, staring at Ty until the silence bordered on awkward. Just as Ty began to shift slightly in his seat, Zane asked, “What question is it that I wanted answered exactly?”

There was a flash—an incredibly brief flash—of uncertainty on Ty’s face. “Whether or not I’d let you take me out.”

Zane’s eyebrows rose. How in the hell had Ty noticed Zane’s obsession? The only one Zane had vented his frustrations to was…

Shit. Kelly. Damn him. Kelly had been talking. It had to be him.

Saving the section of his thesis he’d been working on, Zane shut his laptop and slid it into his bag before folding his arms and leaning his elbows on the table. “Who says I want to take you anywhere?”

Ty smirked. “You stare a lot, dude. You’re not exactly subtle.”

“Hmm.” Zane silently cursed himself out, calling himself a thousand different kinds of idiot for letting Ty catch him watching.

A large part of Zane wanted to admit everything, give in, and ask the guy out. There was a small part of his mind that disagreed, though. Mostly because of the gleam in Ty’s eyes that had originally caught Zane’s attention. Smug and confident yet somehow bored and maybe a little sad. He was brash and loud and troublesome, but Zane saw the underlying currents, the hidden riptide that kept dragging people under Ty’s spell and spitting them back out again when they weren’t prepared to handle what Ty had hidden under the surface.

 _Don’t make it too easy_ , that smaller voice whispered.  _He’ll walk away if he doesn’t have to work for it._

“What if I just liked looking?” Zane asked. “You’re pretty, but you’re a player.”

Ty blinked and cocked his head slightly. Zane could almost hear the wheels in his head turning. This wasn’t going the way Ty had expected, Zane would bet. The confusion didn’t last long.

“I only play with people who know the game.” Ty leaned forward, mirroring Zane’s position. The table was narrower than most, though, so just that simple motion had their forearms a hair’s width from touching. “Besides, why look when you can touch? I’m a hands-on learner myself.”

Jesus that was cheesy. Zane bit back a smile and shook his head, picking up the strap of his bag and slinging it over his shoulder as he stood. “I know the game, but it’s not one I want to play. Been there. It gets old fast. But you’re still young. Give it a few years maybe.”

Ty’s smile had dropped. For a second he’d looked hurt, but then his gaze had turned considering and he’d started studying Zane like a puzzle he wanted to figure out. Zane took a step backward and started to turn like he was going to walk away and leave it at that.

Then he stopped a few feet from the table and turned. Ty was still watching him, the frustration and confusion much more obvious since he thought he had a moment unobserved. Zane’s heart stuttered and it took everything he had to shrug carelessly as he said, “Come find me when you grow up, kid.”

Zane had to make himself walk away.

***

“What if I don’t want to grow up?”

Zane shaded his eyes and looked up at Ty. Less than twenty-four hours. Ty hadn’t stayed away even a full day. The thought made Zane want to grin, but Ty’s words didn’t quite bode well. “Then you’re wasting our time.”

“Really? Cause I’ve got about twenty years of anecdotal evidence that says growing up is overrated.”

“Fine.” Shit. Had he played it wrong last time around? He’d really thought that was the best way to give them a chance at an actual relationship instead of a one night stand. Irritation built in his chest and Zane snapped his book shut. “Go be the horn-dog version of Peter Pan for the rest of your life, just leave me out of it.”

Ty crouched in front of Zane, putting his hands on Zane’s shoulders to keep him from getting up. “I never said that. But you said to find you when I grew up and, babe, those are pretty non-specific requirements. Plus, like I said, growing up is overrated.”

Zane rolled his eyes. “You sound like Kelly.”

“Really?” Ty shrugged. “Maybe he’s smarter than he looks then.”

“Small suggestion?” Zane waited until Ty nodded before he continued. “Insulting my friends may not be the best move.”

Ty’s wince was slight—almost imperceptible—but Zane had taught himself to watch Ty closely, looking for those little signals that showed him which way Ty’s tumultuous currents were flowing. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”

“You should be more careful about what you say, then. One of these days you’re going to piss someone off beyond mending.” 

Ty sucked in a sharp breath and jerked his hands back so fast he fell off balance and landed on his ass. Zane reached forward to help him up, but Ty brushed him off, a scowl darkening his features.

“Are you okay?” Zane knew something was wrong, that something dark was brewing behind Ty’s green-hazel eyes, but he couldn’t imagine what had triggered it.

“Fine.” Ty stood up and brushed his jeans off, his movements stiff and jerky. “I gotta go or I’ll be late for my child psych class.”

Warning bells rang  _loud_. Jumping to his feet, Zane ignored the thud as his book fell to the grass and took two long steps to catch up with Ty. Grabbing Ty’s arm, he pulled him to a stop, spinning him until Ty was facing Zane.

“What just happened?”

“Nothing.” Ty exhaled and rubbed his face with his free hand. 

“Not nothing.” Zane stepped closer, grabbing Ty’s other wrist and pulling it away from his face. “What happened?”

Zane had been trying to make a point, but Ty had reacted like he’d insulted Ty’s ancestors while running over his cat. There was something more here and Zane had no idea how to figure out what it was.

Ty gave Zane a sad smile that sent splinters through Zane’s chest. “You’re right. I need to grow up and I need to stop letting my tongue run my brain and hurt people I care about and ruin my life and so you’re right and I’m going to go now, okay?”

It was the most Zane had ever heard Ty say at one time and it was also the rawest, most emotionally honest words he’d ever heard in his life. Ty was hurting and that pain was so obvious on his face and in his voice that Zane wanted to pull him close and wrap him up tight. He wanted to put Band-Aids over all of Ty’s emotional wounds and make sure he never hurt like this again.

Zane opened his mouth. Ty spoke first.

“Let me go, Zane.” Ty’s voice was quiet and steady and yet, somehow, raw. “Please.”

His hands released automatically, before his brain had a chance to protest. Then Ty smiled—a tragic mockery of his usual cocky grin—and saluted Zane. “See ya around, Lone Star.”

Hands in the pocket of his jeans and head high, Ty strolled away from Zane. Only the stiffness running up his spine gave his tension away and only the slightly too-quick pace showed Zane just how desperate Ty was to be  _anywhere_  but here.

Zane stood there, helpless and lost, wondering what the fuck had just happened and how he was supposed to fix it now.

***

Nick had always been easier to find than Ty, Zane had just never had any interest in catching him alone until now. Even though Zane was moving quietly, Nick’s head tilted like a dog catching a strange sound and then he turned unerringly in Zane’s direction.

It was a little eerie, that moment.

“He screwed it up, didn’t he?” Nick asked, very little surprise on his face.

“I don’t know.” Zane sat next to Nick on the bench and sighed. “I think we both did. I just don’t know what I did exactly.”

Nick’s eyes narrowed and he nodded slowly. “Tell me what happened.”

Starting with the first day, Zane told Nick about his brief conversation with Ty, including Zane’s theory that making Ty work for it might make the relationship last beyond one night.

Nick smirked at that. “You read people pretty well, don’t you?”

“Sometimes.” Zane shrugged. “Apparently not this morning.”

Tilting his head in acknowledgement, Nick crooked two fingers in Zane’s direction, silently telling Zane to give him the rest.

So Zane did. He wasn’t prepared for the stormy scowl that flashed across Nick’s face, though.

“Shit,” Nick growled. “Fucking asshole.”

Zane scooted back a few inches just in case. “Him or me?”

Nick snorted. “ _Me_.” Before Zane could ask what that meant, Nick said, “You couldn’t have known. You were right about his tongue getting him into trouble—and believe me I would’ve bit into him for saying that shit about Kelly too—” Nick’s eyes flicked up to meet Zane’s and he seemed a little startled for some reason. “If, uh, if I was in your place, I would’ve protected my friend like that too.”

Since Nick seemed to be waiting for an answer, Zane nodded. “Okay.”

“Right. Um…” Nick exhaled slowly and seemed to be trying to gather his thoughts. “The problem is that that particular failing of his is gonna be a sore spot right now. Cause I ripped into him for the same thing the other night.”

“Oh. Shit.” Zane dug his fingers into his hair and shook his head. “It’s not like I can even apologize because I still think I’m right. But shit… What do I do?”

“Ambush him,” Nick said instantly. “He’s not gonna come anywhere near you for a while now. Or he will and he’ll be back to that…” Nick’s nose wrinkled in distaste as his hand circled the air in front of him. “That caricature he’s been the past year.”

“Yeah. That.” Zane dropped his hands and stared at Nick, hoping for answers. “Why does he do that?”

“It’s a long story that doesn’t have anything to do with you.” The tone alone told Zane that he wasn’t getting a word of that particular story. “If you make it past Ty’s outer wall he might tell you. Isn’t my place.”

“Fair enough.” Zane took a deep breath and rubbed his palms on his thighs. “So. Ambush him. That’d be a plan if I could ever actually  _find_  him.”

Nick sat for a moment, silent and contemplative. Zane knew that Nick could find Ty, but would Ty’s best friend be willing to offer  _that_  much insider information?

Finally, Nick nodded to himself. “He volunteers at the Humane Society crazy early on Saturday and Sunday mornings.”

Zane blinked. “The  _Humane Society_?”

“Kittens, man.” Nick smirked and shrugged. “Dude’s always had a soft spot.”

 _Kittens_ , Zane thought.  _Who’d’ve thought?_

***

Zane watched the building closely, hoping Ty left through the front door and not a service entrance or something. Shifting carefully, Zane rolled his shoulders and adjusted his weight on the seat of his motorcycle. Nick said that Ty usually left by nine, but it was almost ten and Zane still hadn’t seen him. Another five minutes and Zane was grabbing his helmet and getting ready to give it up for today.

 _Maybe tomorrow_ , Zane thought as the door opened and the person he’d been waiting over an hour to see walked out.

Head down, hands deep in the pockets of his ratty sweatshirt, and shoulders slumped, Tyler Grady looked nothing like his usual self. He seemed smaller. Softer. More vulnerable. It made Zane’s heart ache just watching him and it made him all the more determined to talk to him. But Ty wasn’t looking up. His eyes never rose from the sidewalk even when he had to shift to the right to avoid a guy pushing a stroller. If Zane waited for Ty to notice him, it wouldn’t happen.

So Zane spoke.

“You gonna hide from me for the rest of the year, doll?”

Ty jerked to a stop. His back straightened, his head whipped in Zane’s direction, and he almost tripped over thin air. For a second, Ty’s jaw went slack, but he pulled himself together fast. The mask he usually wore came back, but it didn’t seem to fit as well as usual. Zane could see cracks in the façade. It was more than obvious that Ty was wary and confused and possibly a little pissed.

“What are you doing here?” Ty demanded.

Zane shrugged.  “Thinking about getting a puppy.” 

“Dog person,” Ty snorted, shaking his head and turning away. “I should’ve known.”

“Want a ride back to campus, doll?”

Ty glanced over his shoulder. “With you? On  _that_?” Ty shook his head. “I might as well throw myself off a cliff.”

Setting his helmet back on the bike, Zane jogged after a still retreating Ty. “You don’t trust my skills?”

“I don’t trust you period.” Ty glanced at him, wariness winning out over confusion for a moment. “I don’t  _know_  you. And you don’t know me.”

“Really?” Zane put a hand on Ty’s shoulder and dragged him to a stop, edging him back a couple of steps until he was pressed against the brick wall of the closest building. “I think I know you pretty well already. I think that if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have been able to call you on your shit the other day.”

“Please,” Ty scoffed. He tried to push off the wall, but Zane held him in place. He tried to shove Zane back, but he didn’t try very hard. Zane grabbed Ty’s wrists and pinned them to the wall at his sides. Ty tugged on Zane’s hold and Zane tightened his grip. There may have been a token resistance, but Zane wasn’t actually holding Ty that tight. No way did Zane believe that Ty would be standing here if he didn’t want to be. Still, Zane saw it when Ty finally let himself  _visibly_ give in. He sagged against the wall and huffed out a vaguely annoyed sigh. “How do you know you were even close?”

“You told me.”

Ty’s eyes widened. “The fuck I did.”

“Not in words, but you wouldn’t have reacted like that if I hadn’t gotten it right.”

“That’s such a load of shit,” Ty muttered. But he couldn’t meet Zane’s eyes when he said it.

Zane pressed closer, so close they were almost pressed against each other chest to thigh. There was a bare inch of space—hard as that was to hold—because Zane wanted Ty to be the one to cross that last inch. Zane _needed_  Ty to be the one to cross that last inch.

“Why is it so hard to believe that I know you?”

“Because I don’t even know me, you arrogant fuck!”

The words were just barely below a shout, but they felt loud. Screamed. Shouted through a megaphone in an echo-y canyon. It was those words in that tone in that moment that finally showed Zane the truth.

Ty wasn’t just wary, he was terrified. Absolutely fucking petrified.

Zane’s heart melted a little bit more.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of, Ty.”

Ty’s entire body stiffened and Zane worried he might break free. All he did was glare. “I’m  _not_  afraid. Not of anything and sure as hell not of you.”

“Yes you are.” Zane leaned closer, leaving that bit of space between their bodies but letting his cheek rub against Ty’s. He had to bite back a smile when Ty gasped at the contact. Bringing his lips closer to Ty’s ear, Zane whispered, “What scares you more, Ty? That I know you? That I won’t let you get away with the same shit you pull on everyone else? That I might make you work for it with me, make you earn my attention instead of just giving it to you? Or that I actually like you despite this bullshit persona you put on in front of everyone?”

When Zane stopped talking, there was silence. Cars passed on the nearby road, birds chirped above them, the sun beat down on Zane’s back, making the black leather jacket he wore far too warm, but Ty didn’t make a sound. Zane couldn’t even hear him breathing.

“You don’t know me.” Ty’s voice was hoarse and broken, making the words sound less like a statement and more like a question. A plea. “And once you do you won’t like me. I fuck everything up eventually. I’ve got one friend left and even he barely tolerates me anymore. I just refuse to let him walk away.”

“Nick loves you.” So much so that it had stayed Zane’s hand for a long time. So much so that it was hard to battle down the jealousy of their relationship even without knowing exactly how deep their past went. But Ty didn’t need any of that. Not now and probably not ever. Plus, Nick had sent Zane here to find Ty. He owed the guy. “He loves you more than almost anyone in my life loves me and you’re being purposefully blind if you can’t see that.”

Ty pulled in a long breath and exhaled. “What do you want, Zane? Why are you here?”

“I didn’t like the way we left it the other day.”

“So you decided to stalk me  _here_?” Ty wriggled enough that Zane pulled back to see his face. He looked more annoyed than Zane expected. “I don’t even have to ask  _how_  you found me ‘cause it was either Nick or you really _are_  stalking me. I’m not sure which one pisses me off more.”

Zane didn’t want Ty thinking he’d taken this  _that_ far, so he said, “Nick told me you came here weekends.”

“Traitor,” Ty muttered. “You say everything you came here to say or are you going to hold me here until I lose all feeling in my fingers?”

Zane swallowed a sigh. He’d known that Ty would probably need to come around in his own time, but part of his mind had still hoped that they’d be able to work everything out here and now.

“I’ll let you go, doll. All you had to do was ask.”

Zane dipped his head to kiss Ty’s cheek. Ty turned his head to speak. The timing was all wrong. Or utterly perfect.

Their lips brushed, the barest of touches, but it was the spark that lit the fire.

Someone groaned. Zane felt the vibration on his lips and still couldn’t be sure who had made the sound. He didn’t care. Releasing Ty’s wrists, he pinned him bodily to the wall, cradling Ty’s head in his hands to protect it from the rough brick. Ty’s fingers gripped Zane’s hips and somehow pulled Zane closer. The kiss was anger and lust and heat and lips and teeth and tongue. The kiss was hard brick and soft skin, hard muscles and soft touches. It was Ty who tasted like cinnamon and smelled like a kennel and all Zane wanted to do was hold him right here in the circle of his arms for the rest of his life because this kiss was even better than he’d thought kissing Ty would be.

“I ought to deck you,” Ty mumbled when they finally pulled apart.

Zane arched an eyebrow. “Do you want to?”

For a second, Ty stared at Zane, his eyes searching Zane’s face for something. Whatever it was, he must have found it because a smile tugged the corners of Ty’s lips as he ducked his head and pressed a kiss against the side of Zane’s neck, lips and a tiny nibble of teeth before he straightened. “Shut up and take me home, Lone Star.” 

Heart stuttering in shock, Zane gripped Ty tighter. “Your home or mine, doll?”

“Both, but mine first.” Ty shook his head and wrinkled his nose. “I need to shower because I smell like a litter box. Then we’ll stop by your place so you can change.”

“Change for what?”

“Lunch. I’m taking you out.”

“What? Really?” He’d been somewhat in control up to this point, but now Zane was suddenly out of his depth and floundering. How had things done such a drastic 180?

Ty nodded, running his fingers along skin just above the waistband of Zane’s jeans. “You were making me work for it, right? That was the grand plan here?” Ty waited for Zane to nod before he shrugged, smirking as he said, “Well, don’t stop now.”

Zane grinned and cupped Ty’s face, bringing him in for another kiss. “Don’t worry about that, doll. I don’t think either of us ever pick the easy route.” 


	6. Fumbling Firsts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once again it's the middle of the night and Kelly is on his way downstairs to do laundry. He hasn't slept in more than a day and can barely keep his eyes open. The lack of sleep doesn't make him the best company but Nick doesn't seem to mind.

Kelly was down to zero clothes again. He really,  _really_  didn’t want to do laundry tonight, but he’d be going to his last midterm naked tomorrow if he didn’t. Yawning and stumbling down the last couple of steps to the basement, Kelly readjusted his grip on his basket and shuffled into the laundry room in his slightly-too-small-I’m-only-wearing-these-because-everything-else-is-dirty pajama pants and bunny slippers. He didn’t even have a shirt. They were all in his overflowing basket.

It took a bit of a fight to get the door open without dropping his basket—coordination always went out the window when Kelly was this exhausted—but he eventually stumbled into the laundry room. Like usual at this time of night on a Wednesday, it was empty except for the redhead sitting on top of one of the machines. Kelly thought about starting a conversation but he was too tired to even open his mouth right now. It was taking all of his concentration just to make it to the washing machines without tripping over his bunny slippers.

Nick looked up and, this time, spoke first. “Hey, Kels.”

“Hey.” Kelly stared at the basket in his hands, trying to remember what came next. Oh. Right. Color sorting. He opened two machines and, moving so much slower than he was used to. He really shouldn’t have let it get this bad but his organic chem class was brutal and he’d needed so much more study time than he’d originally budgeted.

“You okay?”

Kelly looked up, surprised to find Nick watching him with concern in his eyes. He nodded and smiled sleepily. “Long few weeks is all. Coffee and willpower will only get you so far.”

Nodding, Nick relaxed a little. “Yeah I think midterms are kicking everyone’s ass this semester.”

“Hmm…” It was about the only response Kelly could manage.

Kelly fell into habit, but got stuck on a striped shirt. Blue and white. So does it go with the colors or the whites? Where did he usually put it? Shit. Kelly’s mind was so sluggish he couldn’t remember.

“Haven’t seen you around lately.”

Startled, Kelly jumped back, his foot landing in his half-empty basket. When he tried to straighten, the plastic slipped on the concrete floor. His bunny slippers didn’t have any traction either. Arms wheeling, Kelly tried to regain his balance but some tiny, still-awake section of his brain knew he was about to bust his head wide open.

Arms wound around his waist. As suddenly as he was tilting backwards, Kelly was flying up, practically lifted off the ground.

“Whoa.” Kelly blinked up at Nick, really noticing for the first time how much taller he was. Kelly’s hands rested on Nick’s shoulders and Nick’s arms were still around his waist. Nick’s very large, very warm hands were on Kelly very bare waist. “You’ve got good reflexes.”

“Sometimes.” Nick swallowed and Kelly watched the muscles in his throat shift. Kelly didn’t think he’d ever really noticed how many muscles someone could have in their throat. Nick had a lot. 

Realizing he was staring at the guy’s throat and still clinging to him like baby monkey, Kelly cleared his throat and dropped his hands, stepping back as soon as Nick released him. Kelly rubbed the back of his neck with one hand, trying to make his brain work.

“Sorry about the klutz moment. What did you say?”

Nick still looked a little worried. “Just that I haven’t seen you around.”

“Well, you could’ve if you called.” Kelly shrugged and went back to sorting his laundry. “You know how to find me now. But I guess Ty was easier to convince than you thought he would be?”

Kelly glanced at Nick as Irish nodded.

“I figured if only ‘cause I haven’t seen much of Zane lately.” Kelly wadded up a red shirt and chucked it into the color washer, irrational irritation bubbling up from the center of his chest. “It’s a good thing I’ve been basically living at the library recently or I’d’ve been fucking pissed that everyone basically abandoned me the past few weeks.”

His moment of only slightly justified spite was ruined by a jaw-cracking yawn. By the time it was over, the moment of anger had passed and he was smiling again.

“Don’t mind me, Irish. I’m always ridiculous when I’m half-asleep.” He shrugged one shoulder and stared at the machines in front of him, trying to pinpoint why he felt like he was forgetting something.

“I’m sorry.”

Kelly blinked slowly and looked at Nick. “Why?” Irish had nothing to be sorry for.

Nick stared at him for a second before he finally shrugged and glanced away, his hand coming up to his lips. Exhausted as he was, even Kelly had picked up on that nervous gesture. Kelly just didn’t have the brain power to figure out why Nick would be nervous around him. All Kelly wanted was his bed. Clean sheets and his bed and…

“Shit.” Kelly groaned and dug the heels of his hands into his eyes. “God dammit.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Ugh. Nothing.” Kelly dropped his hands and shook himself like a dog shedding water in an attempt to wake himself up. “Just my stupid ass forgetting to bring my sheets down here with the rest of the laundry.”

“Well, isn’t like there’s a lack of machines.” Nick seemed amused by the whole situation and Kelly kind of wanted to hit him for it.

“Yeah but it means I gotta walk all the fuck the way up to my room again and then back down and damn, Irish.” Sighing, Kelly shook his head and took a step toward the door. “I’ll be back, I guess.”

For a second it looked like Nick was going to say something, but then he bit his lip and nodded. Feeling a vague sense of disappointment Kelly couldn’t quite place, he waved over his shoulder as he headed for the stairs.

Climbing six stupid flights of stairs felt like scaling a mountain to Kelly. He was ready to collapse in the hall by the time he made it to flat ground, but he shuffled forward until he was standing in front of his door. Fumbling with the key, he finally got the door open and stepped into his tiny single room. He’d lucked out getting it. Most other people in this dorm were stuffed two or three in a room. Kelly wasn’t sure how it’d happened but he was sure as shit not complaining to anyone about it.

 _Sheets_ , he reminded himself.  _Sheets and then back to the laundry room_.

That’s what he should’ve done but after a minute of staring at his bed, Kelly gave in to the temptation to sink into the mountain of blankets piled on top of his mattress. Digging into the pile like a cat, Kelly sighed and closed his eyes, reaching for his phone to set an alarm. Just a few minutes. He’d just sleep for a few…

***

Bleary-eyed, Kelly stumbled to the door wondering who the fuck would be knocking at five in the morning. He opened the door and saw Nick standing there with Kelly’s basket of laundry on one hip, his own basket on the other. The little light in Kelly’s head tried to click on. Tried and failed.

Kelly stared stupidly at Nick. How did Irish end up with his laundry?

Shit. Laundry. He’d come up here to get his sheets and then nothing. He must’ve been more exhausted than he’d realized. “I fell asleep.”

“I figured. You couldn’t hardly keep your eyes open before.” Nick smiled slightly—that little curve of the corner of his lips that was really as close as he ever got to smiling. “Where do you want me to drop this?”

“What? Oh. Oh! Yeah, sorry, come in.”

Kelly backed away from the door, leaving enough room for Nick to turn sideways and crab-walk in to his tiny single-bed room.

“Just drop it on my bed, I guess.” Kelly yawned as Nick complied with the request. He was still half asleep and completely confused and it wasn’t a good combination.

When the basket left Nick’s hands, Kelly poked through it. Not only was everything clean and dry, the shit was all folded with military precision.

“Did you…you did my laundry?”

Nick shrugged. “You couldn’t stop yawning earlier so when you didn’t come back I figured you’d crashed. If I left it sitting down there you know some asshole would’ve messed with it.”

“Well, yeah, but…” No one had done Kelly’s laundry for him in years. Not since before his parents died. He shook his head, trying to make himself think clearly. The tightness in his chest was not tears or anything more than an appreciation of a nice gesture from a friend. That’s it. Not loss. It didn’t feel like loss. He didn’t have anything left to lose so it  _couldn’t_ be loss. There wasn’t anything to lose here. Nick was a friend and he’d done something nice. So why the fuck did this gesture make Kelly feel like he was missing out on something? “Um, how much do I owe you?”

“Don’t worry about it, Kels.”

“Dude. You dried and folded all of my laundry. At least let me make sure that it didn’t cost you anything but time.”

Nick gave him that tiny quarter-smile. “I don’t mind, Kels. It was only a dollar. Plus, I got a feeling you’d’ve done the same thing if the positions had been reversed.”

“Well, yeah, but, no—” Kelly shook his head, frowning. “That’s not the point. You don’t owe me anything Irish. If anything, I still owe you for sneaking a peek at your conspiracy book.”

“You’re a caretaker, right?” The light behind Nick’s green eyes seemed softer somehow, almost fond. “Used to watching out for the people you care about. Makes sense why you’re a pre-med, but you’re gonna burn yourself out if you keep operating like this. You gotta learn how to let people do things to help you out too, Kels.”  

Kelly nodded absently through most of that speech just to show he was listening, but then his mind stuck on one phrase in particular. “How’d you know I was pre-med? Did I—I don’t remember telling you that.”

Nick’s thumb traced his lip. Nervous. “Ty told me.”

“You asked Ty about me? And how the hell does he know what my major is?”

Smile coming back a little, Nick said, “Zane.”

“Oh. Yeah, okay.” The pieces began to click together in Kelly’s sleepy mind. “That makes sense.”

He was still going to pay Nick back, though.

Opening the drawer in his nightstand, Kelly grabbed a bunch of quarters from the jar he kept there and held them out to Nick.

“Thanks, Irish. I appreciate it.”

Nick sighed and carefully set his basket down next to Kelly’s. “I don’t want your money, Kels.”

Frowning, Kelly pulled his hand back a little. “Fine. But I’ll pay for yours next time.” He started to turn, but Nick caught his wrist and held him in place.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“It’s only fair.”

“I don’t care about fair. Not with you.”

“Huh?” Kelly shook his head. “What does that mean? Why not with me?”

Nick opened his mouth to speak, but he seemed at a loss for words. There was something behind his eyes, something that made Kelly’s stomach flip and his cheeks flush, but he was still too exhausted to think clearly. He should recognize that look—he  _really_  felt like he should know what that look meant—but he had no clue.

Not until Nick growled and yanked Kelly across the foot of space dividing them. Kelly stumbled and ended up plastered against Nick’s chest and then Nick’s lips were on his and life as Kelly knew it ended in a flash of heat and light.

Oh my god a guy was kissing him and Kelly hadn’t punched him yet and why was this happening but holy fuck it had better not stop any time soon because now Nick’s hands were moving up Kelly’s back and all Kelly could think was  _why hasn’t kissing ever felt this good before?_

When Nick finally pulled far enough away to see Kelly’s face, he blinked. “Are you…?” Whatever he saw in Kelly’s face made him drop his hands in an instant and take a step away. “Sorry. Shit. I’m sorry. I didn’t—I mean, I thought you…” Nick ran his hand over his mouth, his eyes scrunched closed tight. “I shouldn’t have done that. I’m…I’ll just…” 

Nick turned and grabbed his laundry basket and headed for the door with quick, long steps. Kelly reached out wildly, his hand barely closing around the edge of Nick’s basket before he reached the door.

“Don’t.”

Nick tensed, but he still turned to look at Kelly. “Don’t what?”

“Don’t run before I figure out what the fuck just happened.”

“Nothing happened. I made a mistake and it’s not a big deal and we can just leave it there, all right?”

Right in front of Kelly’s eyes, Nick changed. He seemed to get taller and his eyes turned icy as his shoulders pulled back to make his chest broader than ever. It was like watching a cat bristle. Or a porcupine. Kelly was fascinated by the transformation, but how easily Nick could switch gears like this made him sad, too.

What kind of life had his friend lived to make a skill like that necessary? It made Kelly desperate to see even that miniscule quarter-smile back on Nick’s face.

 “You didn’t just kiss me then?”

Nick closed his eyes and took a quick, deep breath, one thumb brushing over his lips. “Obviously I kissed you,” he ground out, unfailingly honest as always. “It won’t happen again.”

“It won’t?” A ball of disappointment gathered in the pit of Kelly’s stomach.

“Promise.”

“Do you always keep your promises, Irish?”

He nodded once, the gesture sharp and decisive. “Always.”

 _That’s a shame this time_ , Kelly thought. And then blinked in shock as the automatic, nearly subconscious, thought registered with his conscious mind.

He didn’t get a chance to say the words aloud, though. Nick turned on his heel and practically bolted out the door.

 _Come back_ , Kelly wished he’d been able to say.  _I want to try that again_.

By the time Kelly’s tongue unglued itself from the roof of his mouth, the door was shut and Nick was gone. Quite possibly for good.

The thought sent a shudder of fear and denial through Kelly’s body.

No. No fucking way was that guy just going to disappear on Kelly. He refused to allow it. Kelly may not have ever kissed a guy—or even been attracted to one before—but that kiss had been hot and Nick’s mind was fascinating and his green eyes and those arms and (quite honestly) just about everything else on Nick was gorgeous. 


	7. Secrets and Set-Ups

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kelly's tried--multiple times and multiple ways--but Nick seems to have vanished off the face of the planet. Then, hope comes from a strange source.

Kelly almost screamed when his earbud was yanked out.

“What the fuck did you do to my friend?”

Tyler Grady towered over Kelly, arms crossed and scowl firmly entrenched on his face.

“What are you talking about?” Kelly still felt like if anyone should be pissed off about this situation, it should be him. Nick had kissed him and then  _Nick_ had been the one to run. It had been a week and Kelly had tried everything he could think of to find Nick. Yesterday he’d resorted to literally sitting in the hall outside his door for hours on end waiting for him to leave or come home. He’d been forced to give up with the RA yelled at him with vague threats Kelly wasn’t sure he could actually pull off.

“I haven’t seen him in days. He won’t return my phone calls. He’s not going to  _class_.” Ty’s glower got stronger, the lines around his eyes and his mouth getting deeper, and his fingers were digging into his own biceps. “He was fine. Then he runs into  _you_  and he fucking pulls a Houdini on me.”

Ty placed his hands on the table and leaned into Kelly’s space. “So I’ll ask you one more time. What. The  _fuck_. Did you do. To. My. Friend.”

Kelly wanted to punch this guy through a wall, but he knew that Ty would only give as good as he got and where would that get either of them? And he may be going about it in a bass ackwards way, but Ty was trying to protect his friend. Kelly tried to keep that in mind as he forced himself to take a deep breath and smile at the asshole.

“Hi. I’m Kelly Abbott and I’m going to assume you’re Tyler Grady.”

Ty blinked, but the scowl only deepened. “No shit. Are you going to tell me or what?”

“That depends.” Kelly sat back in the uncomfortable wood chair at the library. “Are you going to believe a thing I say? And are we going to have the conversation like this because if you don’t back off soon I’m going to toss you into a bookshelf.”

Snorting, Ty shook his head. “You could try, pipsqueak.”

“Hmm.” People always underestimated Kelly because of his size, but he’d been studying various forms of martial arts since he was a kid. Since before his parents had died. And then after they were gone? He poured a shit ton of his grief into those classes and the work had paid off. He only used it as a last resort, though, and he hadn’t reached that yet with Tyler. Plus, if he ever did find Nick, Irish might not like it if Kelly had dented his best friend. Kelly sighed instead and shook his head. “Yeah, I don’t get it.”

“Don’t get what?” Ty’s eyes narrowed.

“Why Nick puts up with you.”

“Son of a bitch—” The muttered curse came out just before Ty’s fist swung for Kelly’s head.

Kelly ducked the punch, swung out of his seat, and caught Ty’s wrist before the second blow could land.

Ty’s eyes widened and now Kelly was the one glaring.

“You’re a fucking moron and if this is how you handle stress it’s no fucking wonder Nick didn’t come talk to you.” Kelly shoved him away a few steps. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere near your ass.” 

“You don’t have a clue what you’re talkin’ about, asshole,” Ty growled. His hands were clenched, but he didn’t attack again. This time he was eying Kelly with a much healthier dose of respect in his gaze.

“Neither do you.” Kelly rolled his shoulders and glanced around quickly to make sure they hadn’t garnered too much attention. Luckily Kelly had hid himself away in a deserted corner of the library that people rarely visited. He’d thought the placement might keep him from wasting all his study time watching for Nick. “Look, you can either calm the hell down and maybe we’ll figure out how to find him or you can leave or I can drop you and get us both in trouble.” Kelly shrugged. “Pick one.”

This time Ty didn’t brush him off as fast. His gaze was assessing, measuring. Finally, he nodded once.

“Fine. We’ll talk.” With the toe of one of his combat boots, Ty pulled the chair across from Kelly away from the table and spun it around, sitting on it backward. “But I reserve the right to kick your ass if I don’t like what you have to say.”

“You can  _try_.” Kelly sank into the seat, forcing himself to sit as straight as possible when all he wanted to do was collapse and fall asleep until the mess that his life had become fixed itself. Because every time Kelly tried he only seemed to make it worse. “So. You haven’t seen him either? Since when?”

Ty’s scowl barely lessened when he spoke. “Thursday morning. He was a mess at breakfast and the only thing I could get out of him was that he’d seen you that morning and then he split after that and I haven’t seen him since.”

“So you assumed I’d done what, exactly?”

“Insulted his heritage, his manhood and his dead grandmother?” Ty deadpanned before growling, “I don’t fucking know! That’s why I tracked you down!”

“I didn’t insult his anything.” Except maybe his pride. But, shit. The Irish bastard should’ve given him more than two seconds to adjust to the situation before he fucking bolted like that.

Ty took a breath and closed his eyes for a moment, seeming to regain a little composure. “So what did happen then?”

Since Ty had asked the question in an almost even tone, Kelly decided to answer it.

Kelly told Ty about the early morning—including the bunny slippers—and about how he’d forgotten his sheets and fallen asleep in his dorm. How Nick had shown up with his laundry (Ty had run his hand over his dark hair and muttered, “Jesus Christ you big softie”) and how he’d reacted when Kelly had tried to pay him back.

“He doesn’t do favors often,” Ty said. “When he does, he won’t take anything in return. Ever. Especially not if he knows you’re only doing it to pay him back.”

“Yeah, I was starting to pick up on that when he kissed me.”

“It’s this thing he has where he—wait. He  _what_?”

Kelly raised an eyebrow at Ty. “What? Didn’t know he was into guys?”

“Oh, I knew he was into guys. I just didn’t think he’d up and  _kiss_  you.”

“Yeah, well, me neither until then.” 

Comprehension began to dawn on Ty’s face. “Oh.” Worry lines appeared for a second before Ty’s glower came back. “If you punched him for that I will destroy you.”

“I promise that you’d’ve seen a bruise on his face that morning if I’d punched him. And plus. Why the hell would I still be looking for him if I’d decked him for kissing me?”

Ty shrugged. “Guilty conscience? To punch him again? Lots of reasons.”

Was he for real? Who would do that? “Your brain is a dark place, man.” 

“You don’t want to know. Trust me.”

“Probably not,” Kelly agreed. He watched Ty twitch for a second, wondering what could possibly have attracted Nick and Zane so hard to this guy. He did seem loyal to his friend, and that was a definite point in his favor, but otherwise… Kelly shrugged off the thoughts. Why Nick had chosen Ty wasn’t important. What mattered was convincing Ty to help him corner Irish.

“You ever kissed a guy before that night?” Ty asked out of the blue.

“No.”

Ty’s head tilted like he needed to literally view the situation from another angle. “Ever wanted to?”

“Not particularly.”

Grunting, Ty rubbed his shoulder with one hand. “Ever want to kiss Nick?”

“Not before he kissed me.”

Ty sat up a little straighter. “And after?”

“After, he ran away so fast I was still coughing in the dustcloud when the door shut.”

“Stupid bastard,” Ty muttered.

“Pretty much.”

“So what do you want to see Nick for then?” Ty watched Kelly so closely that Kelly was sure Ty could somehow read his mind. “Apology from him? Explanation? What?”

Kelly shook his head. “I don’t think that’s any of your business.”

“If you want any help at all finding him, you’ll tell me why.”

“You’re not having any better luck finding him than I did!” Kelly huffed. “Why the hell should I tell you anything when you’re probably not going to track him down now any easier than you did before?”

Ty’s answering smile was so smug Kelly was tempted to smack it off his face. “Because who d’you think he’ll call first when he comes out of hiding? Me or you? And who do you think he’d be more likely to listen to if they threatened him with bodily harm if he didn’t get his Irish ass back to campus? Me or you?” 

“Fucking asshole,” Kelly muttered, rubbing his hands over his face. As much as it stung to admit it, Ty was right. Nick would call Ty. Ty was his best friend. Kelly was just some guy Nick had kissed once and then instantly regretted.

Shit.

Kelly’s stomach turned and he closed his eyes. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe he should fucking catch a clue and leave the guy alone. Maybe it wasn’t something Nick had seen in Kelly’s face that made him run. Maybe he’d run because he’d realized that he’d made a horrible mistake.

The thought made him want to cry.

Kelly considered, for a moment, dropping the chase and walking away. He couldn’t do it. Couldn’t even pretend to seriously consider it.

Nick was almost all he thought about now. The need to see him again, to see if he really had felt that amazing wrapped around Kelly or if a second kiss—an expected kiss—would be better or worse than the first, that need bit at his heels and tore at his chest. He couldn’t back down until he knew one way or the other. Kelly had to see Nick again so Nick could either shoot him down or kiss him again. Cause even now, there were really only those two choices. As shocked and flustered as Kelly had been in that moment, he remembered the kiss. If kissing Nick was even half as hot when Kelly was expecting it as when he was half-asleep and frozen, well…

Well, honestly, Kelly might explode.

“You just want me to wait then?”

“Yeah. In his dorm room.”

Groaning, Kelly shook his head. “I tried that already.”

“No, you probably sat  _outside_  his dorm room.”

Kelly blinked. “You have a key?”

“I’m his best friend. Of course I have a key.”

He had a point. Kelly had a key to Zane’s off-campus apartment, after all. “I’m supposed to have class this afternoon.”

“Skip it.”

“Okay.” Kelly didn’t really want to go anyway. “You want me to just go there and wait?”

Ty leaned his elbows on the back of the chair and nodded. “I’m going to text him and threaten dire things—all of them true—if he doesn’t show up tonight. I’m going to tell him that I will be waiting for him in his room and that only his physical appearance or a death certificate notarized and delivered by the sheriff will save him.”

“Think it’ll work?”

“It’d better,” Ty muttered as he stood up, jerking his head toward the exit. “Nick is fucking good at disappearing when he wants to. If he doesn’t answer this, there’s no way either of us are finding him before he is good and fucking ready to be found.

“Great.” Kelly packed his things up quick, stuffing everything into his messenger bag. As glad as he was to have a plan in place, he felt more and more like a stalker. Now he was planning to sit in the guy’s room?

Life had seemed to blissfully simple when the semester started. What the fuck had happened to that?

They walked out of the library and Ty’s cellphone buzzed. The smile that graced his face when he saw the screen completely transformed him. For the first time Kelly caught a glimmer of what might be under the surface of Tyler Grady, that shining something that kept guys like Nick and Zane hovering in orbit for more.

“Hold up,” Ty muttered, still smiling as he typed something on the screen.

“Who is it?”

Ty’s smirk was sly. “My boyfriend.”

Oh shit. If Zane wasn’t the one who showed up, Kelly might have to beat Ty up anyway. Which would be a shame ‘cause they’d just started getting along. Luckily for both of them, Zane strolled around the corner a few minutes later, his dark eyes lighting up when he spotted Ty.

“Hey, doll.” The greeting was quiet, meant for Ty’s ears only, but Kelly was standing close enough to overhear.

Ty, amazingly, blushed. “Hi.”

He tilted his head back slightly, angling for a kiss that Zane did not seem unwilling to bestow. Their greeting was shockingly sweet, especially coming from two guys who glared at the rest of the world with a fuck-with-me-and-I’ll-burn-you-to-ash stare. Instead of separating, Zane slipped his arm around Ty’s waist and smiled at Kelly.

“Heya, Doc.”

“Long time no see, Z. So, boyfriends?” Kelly crossed his arms. “And I have to hear about it from this jackass?”

Zane’s eyes widened. “Boyfriends?” He looked down at Ty. “You’re introducing me as your boyfriend now?”

Ty’s blush got deeper. “Mess with me on this and I will end you, Garrett.”

He might not have known, but Zane looked more than pleased by the information. He looked practically beatific.  Kelly laughed. “Well, at least I wasn’t the last to know.”

Zane bent slightly to whisper something in Ty’s ear, something that made the guy shiver, but when he straightened, Kelly finally had his friend’s attention.

“I guess I don’t have to introduce you two then. Where you off to?”

“Stalking the elusive Irish bastard this one calls a friend,” Kelly said, jerking his head toward Ty.

Ty snorted. “Pretty much. Nick’s drilled himself into a pretty deep hole this time. I gotta bail him out again.”

Zane’s lips pursed. “I’m missing something, aren’t I?”

“Nick kissed me last week.” 

Zane’s eyes widened.

“And then he flipped his shit and ran,” Ty finished.

There was a beat of silence where Zane was left to process the information that had just been chucked at him rapid-fire. “I didn’t know you were into guys,” Zane finally commented carefully.

“Yeah. Me neither.”

“Oh.”

Ty nodded and patted Zane’s stomach. “That’s pretty much what I said, too.”

“Yeah. Once he stopped trying to beat me up.”

Zane stiffened and glared at Ty. “You what?”

“I only threw one punch.”

“Two,” Kelly corrected.

“Two.” Ty shrugged. “He dodged them. He’s a fast little fucker.”

“Yeah, I know. He’s also a black belt in five different fighting styles.” Zane sighed and shook his head. “You  _do_  remember what I was telling you about picking fights with people right? One day you’re going to meet someone who’s as surprising as Kelly only without his morals.”

“Whatever. Go mother someone else, babe.” Ty extricated himself from Zane’s hold, but Kelly noticed the way he squeezed Zane’s hand before he let go, like he was softening the blow. Ty raised his eyebrows at Kelly. “Are we doing this or what?”

“Do I even want to know?”

“Probably not,” Ty said before Kelly could answer.

Zane smiled indulgently at Ty, pulling him back for another kiss. “Don’t piss Nick off too badly, doll. And stop taking potshots at Kelly.”

“I promise nothing.” The grin Ty gave Zane was positively evil.

Zane returned it with one of his own. “Call me later if you’re still alive,” he called over his shoulder as he left.

For a second, Ty and Kelly watched him go.

“Break his heart and I will fuck you up,” Kelly said once he was sure Zane was out of earshot.

For once, Ty didn’t brush off Kelly’s claims. “Same goes to you. Hurt Nick and I will teach you what misery really looks like.”

They met each other’s eyes for a second and nodded simultaneously. Kelly was starting to see it now, what Zane and Nick found to like about Ty. Kelly could respect anyone who was that protective of Irish. He was the same way about Zane.

They walked back to the dorm and Ty pulled a key off his keyring. “It might be a while. But I’ll text you if he answers.”

“Fair enough.” At least this time he’d be waiting  _inside_ Nick’s room. Another single room, luckily.

All too soon, Ty was opening the door to Nick’s room. Everything inside was placed with perfect precision. The walls were symmetrically decorated and all the posters had historical or military images. An old laptop sat on the otherwise clean desk and the bed was made with a simple dark blue comforter and white sheets. Despite the posters on the wall, the whole thing felt stark. Unfinished. Almost un-lived-in.

“Don’t say a thing to him about the décor,” Ty warned. “And don’t move anything. And  _don’t_  go snooping, dammit!”

“I won’t.” This time he really wouldn’t. Picking up Nick’s notebook in the laundry room was one thing. Going through his dresser drawers was something completely different.

Ty glared. “You better not. I’m trusting you right now. I don’t do that. So you _better_  not prove me wrong, Abbott.”

“I just want to talk to him, Ty.”

“Yeah?” Ty sighed. “You and me both.” With that, Ty headed for the door, turning only at that last second to say, “Good luck.”

Then he was gone and Kelly was alone.

In Nick’s room.

The temptation to poke around was nearly overwhelming, but Kelly managed to ignore it. It helped to have a compelling enough reason to resist. To help himself out, he sat in Nick’s deck chair and pulled out his phone, opening up a game to keep his mind busy. He might be here a while.

Over two hours passed before his phone buzzed in his hands.

HE SHOULD BE ON HIS WAY, the text said.

THANKS, he sent back.

Nerves made his hands shake. Kelly shoved his phone back in his pocket and sat on his hands. Kelly knew that if he got up, he’d start pacing and he’d be almost powerless to resist the urge to touch everything. So he stayed sitting, locking his hands below his thighs.

Oh God. This could go so badly. He really didn’t want it to, though. He wanted Nick to sit down and explain what the fuck had happened and what Kelly had to do in order to make it happen again.

He’d thought he was nervous. At least, until he heard a key in the lock. _Then_  he was nervous. Petrified. Excited. Kelly couldn’t even name the emotions spinning through his chest.

Nick was on the other side of that door.

And there was a very real possibility that Nick would not be pleased to see him.

“Goddammit, Tyler,” Nick grumbled as the door opened. “Sometimes you just don’t know how to leave well enough a—”

Kelly caught the shock on Nick’s face before that glass wall came down hard and fast. Taking a breath, Kelly pushed to his feet. Just in case this went very wrong. And also in case this went very right.

Forcing a smile, Kelly waved. “Hey, Irish.”


	8. Ultimatums

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kelly's finally cornered Nick and the guy still won't listen. How far is Kelly willing to go to get Nick to listen?

The last thing Kelly expected Nick to do was walk out the door before he’d done more than say hi.

“Stubborn asshole.” Kelly caught the door before it shut and ran down the—thankfully empty—hall. Nick was already disappearing down the stairwell. “Dammit, Nick, will you just  _stop_!”

Nick shook his head but otherwise ignored him.

“Where are you even going?”

“To murder my ex-best-friend.”

“Oh.” Kelly was really only half-opposed to that plan. And only because it took Nick away from him. “Why?”

Nick just grunted and slammed the door at the bottom of the stairs open so hard that Kelly thought it might come off its hinges. Then they were outside and Kelly could run.

Sprinting in front of Nick, Kelly planted his feet in the grass and placed his hands on Nick’s chest, forcing him to stop. The impact jarred them both, sending Kelly stumbling, but Nick’s reflexes won out again, catching Kelly’s wrists and holding him upright until he could stand on his own. Then he let go like Kelly was made of molten rock.

“Thanks,” Kelly huffed and crossed his arms, planting himself firmly in Nick’s path. “Now will you  _please_  stop and talk to me before you go commit a debatably unnecessary felony?”

“Oh it’s necessary.” The ice in Nick’s eyes was positively glacial when he stared over Kelly’s shoulder, but he looked far more hesitant and uncertain when he met Kelly’s eyes. “I’m sorry Ty dragged you in to whatever insanity he worked up.”

“Yeah he’s more than a little crazy but he didn’t drag me—”

Nick wasn’t listening. “I promised I wouldn’t bother you and I—”

“No you didn’t!”

“I—what? I didn’t what?”

“Not to bother me. That’s not what you promised.”

“Yes I did. That’s why—”

“You disappeared?” Kelly shook his head. “I wish you hadn’t.”

“No you don’t!” Nick shouted it so loud Kelly tensed, his energy shifting from annoyed to on edge. “You don’t want anything to do with me. If Tyler hadn’t threatened or coerced you into this plan you wouldn’t be here!”

After days of waiting and chasing and nights of restless sleep broken by disquieting dreams, Kelly’s temper was ten times sharper and quicker than usual. Nick’s immediately dismissive words triggered something dark and angry that splintered open in Kelly’s chest.

Before he could stop himself, Kelly had dug his thumb into the pressure point near the inside of Nick’s elbow and started driving him backward. Nick cried out, his free arm flailing out to grab hold of anything. There was nothing but air. Nick may have been bigger than Kelly, but with his finger digging into that pressure point and Kelly’s weight and stride constantly pushing Nick backwards and off balance, Kelly was in complete control of the giant, redheaded jackass.

“Kelly! Dammit let me—”

“Shut the fuck up, Irish,” Kelly growled. He swiped his keycard at the dorm’s entrance and pulled the door open, shoving Nick into the stairwell. “Keep walking or I will put you on your ass.”

“This is fucking ridiculous.” Nick shook his head and tried to pull his arm out of Kelly’s hold but, like Ty, Nick underestimated him. With a little extra pressure and a twist of his wrist, Kelly had Nick on his knees. For a second Kelly stared down at Nick, watching the flash of surprise that danced across his face.

Taking a breath, Kelly gave himself a moment to calm down, but he didn’t ease up his grip on Nick. Not yet.

“You don’t take me seriously and that needs to change, O’Flaherty.” Nick’s jaw relaxed and his lips parted, but Kelly tightened his grip before the idiot could talk and ruin things again. “No. We’re going to go up to your room and you’re going to sit down and actually talk to me about this shit.”

Nick’s eyes narrowed and Kelly glared right back. He gripped Nick so hard the guy winced.

“Or we can talk here. Like this. I can stay here for hours. Can you?”

A door opened on one of the floors above them and Nick glanced up. Kelly kept his eyes on Nick, counting each second as it ticked past. The footsteps above them had already begun descending (and Kelly had hit fifteen) before Nick nodded.

Kelly released the pressure and held out his hand. “C’mon, Irish.”

Ignoring Kelly’s hand, Nick pushed to his feet. Except for a quick glance up toward the descending steps, Nick kept his eyes on Kelly. He was wary, but not scared. And not defensive either.

Kelly walked behind Nick as they climbed the stairs and watched Nick rub his arm. The echoes of the stairwell carried back Nick’s muttered, “You’re insane.”

“Probably.”

There was only a beat of silence before Nick started grumbling again. “That fucking hurt!”

“It’s  _supposed_  to, Nick.”

“You’re an asshole, Kelly.”

Kelly snorted. “That’s like the pilot calling the hippie high‏.”

After that, Nick only muttered under his breath. The words were quick and low enough that Kelly only caught the tone. Nick was pissed. That was fine. Pissed was better than dismissive. Pissed at least meant that he  _felt_ something.

Kelly was on his way toward ready to admit why that fact was really,  _really_ important.

Nick was still subtly shaking his left arm out when he unlocked the door and guilt bit at Kelly. It was so rare his self-control snapped and Kelly almost always hated himself for it afterward. He especially hated himself for it now, but dammit. Nick saw him as a five-year-old, one who didn’t know his own mind or how to take care of himself. Still, lashing out may not have been the best way to prove otherwise.

“Give me your hand.” Kelly held his hand out palm up. And then he waited. A ripple of shock ran through Kelly when Nick almost immediately obeyed. Kelly smiled a little bit. “Thank you.”

“Don’t make me regret it,” Nick mumbled, watching Kelly carefully.

Kelly’s smile widened and a little of the tension in his gut eased. He worked on a few of the pressure points in Nick’s hands and forearm, helping restore the bloodflow he’d temporarily restricted.

“Why’d you kiss me, Nick?”

Nick closed his eyes. “I already apologized for that, Kelly.”

“Yeah. You did.” Right before he bolted. “And I’d be really glad to be reminded of that apology if it had anything to do with what I asked you.”

Nick sighed and flexed his hand as Kelly worked up to his elbow. “It seemed like a good idea at the time.”

“It would’ve been a better idea if you’d stayed.” Kelly purposefully kept his voice even and soft. Nick’s hand was still tense in his and he could feel Nick’s pulse hammering.

“The look on your face said otherwise.”

Kelly rolled his eyes. “Gimme a break, Irish. My first kiss from a guy and it came from out of left field.”

The corners of Nick’s eyes wrinkled and he looked away, pulling his hand out of Kelly’s grip. “I said I was sorry, Kels.” He sounded so defeated. “I don’t know what else to say.”

Oh Nick was  _so_  not riding the same train of thought as Kelly. This was getting stupid.

Maybe talking wasn’t the way to go. Nick could deny words. Actions always spoke louder, right?

“Hey, Irish?” he asked before he could change his mind.

“What, Kels?” He sounded so resigned and resentful it hurt.

Kelly swallowed and forced himself to talk. “Will you kiss me?”

Nick stiffened like an electric shock had run up his spine. “That’s not funny.”

“I’m not laughing.”

“You shouldn’t joke about that shit,” Nick warned. “It’s not fair. And one day someone is going to take you up on it.”

“Fucking hell, O’Flaherty.” Kelly gave up. He wrapped his hand around the back of Nick’s neck and, instead of asking, demanded. “Kiss me you oblivious Irish bastard or I will knock you out. Get it?”

Nick’s breath stuttered and his eyes went wide. The shock only lasted a second before Nick finally— _fucking finally_ —gave in.

Their first kiss was like a possession. It was shock and heat and lust—at least on Nick’s part. This time Nick kissed like he was drowning and Kelly was air. His fingers dug into Kelly’s short hair and Kelly felt the vibrations of Nick’s groan against his lips.

Kelly had been stunned by how consuming the first kiss was, but this was so much better. This time Kelly had seen it coming. This time, Kelly wanted it as much as—possibly  _more_  than—Nick. Because the kiss had barely started and Nick was trying to pull away.

 _Oh hell no_.

Kelly tightened his grip on Nick’s waist, sliding the tips of his fingers under the waistband of Nick’s jeans and the other between his shoulders. Kelly’s fingers curled and dug into Nick’s skin as the kiss deepened. When Nick shuddered and tilted Kelly’s head back for better access, Kelly almost went boneless in relief.

He wanted this too. Thank fucking god. Because now that Kelly had another taste of Nick, he wanted more.

Eventually breathing became a necessity and they had to separate, but Kelly only allowed a couple of inches. He smiled and whispered against Nick’s lips, “You shouldn’t have left, Irish.”

Nick’s fingers shook against the back of Kelly’s head. “I have no idea what just happened.”

Kelly laughed helplessly and let his head drop to Nick’s shoulder. “Jesus, O. Now you fucking know how I felt.”

When Nick didn’t move or respond or even  _breathe_ , Kelly began to pull away. Maybe he should start apologizing now. Maybe he should, but he really didn’t want to.

“That was pretty much all I wanted to say.” Kelly stepped away, reluctantly letting Nick go. “You don’t have anything to apologize for but running, Nick. And I guess…” Nick was still watching him with wide eyes. Kelly shrugged and glanced at the door, all of the determination and bravado and anger that had gotten him to this point fading away. “I guess you know where to find me if you want to see what could happen from here just don’t…don’t vanish like that again. That ex-best-friend of yours goes all bloodhound when he gets worried.” 

Kelly turned toward the door. He didn’t even get halfway around before Nick’s hand closed on Kelly’s wrist. When Nick tugged, Kelly grinned and let himself be moved. The world stopped moving when Kelly’s back hit the wall with Nick’s hands framing either side of his head. Kelly was nearly breathless and nothing had even happened yet.

“That was fun.” Kelly grinned up at Nick, hope and heat blooming in his chest. “Can we do that again?”

The stern, distant expression on Nick’s face cracked. His lip twitched and Kelly watched him fight the smile that spread across his face. “You’re going to be the death of me, Kels, you know that?”

“I hope not.” Kelly hooked his fingers through Nick’s belt loops and tugged. “I have a feeling there’s a lot you haven’t shown me yet.”

“Kels…” The word came out half sigh, half groan, but Nick didn’t try to pull away. He leaned in. Running the tip of his nose along Kelly’s cheek, Nick exhaled heavily. “You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into.”

“That’s why you’re here to show me.”

Nick’s breath fluttered across Kelly’s neck and he was almost certain he felt Nick’s lips leave behind a kiss before he spoke. “Were you ever even _attracted_ to guys?”

Kelly considered lying—or at least muddying the truth—for all of half a second. “No.” 

“What about me?” The question was barely a whisper. “Were you attracted to  _me_? Even a little bit?”

“Does it count if I didn’t recognize it until you kissed me?”

Nick’s smile was obvious against Kelly’s cheek. “Yes.”

“Well, then, yes.” Because what else could he call the obsession he’d had with Nick since that first accidental meeting? He’d crushed on girls before—plenty of times—but none of them had hit him between the eyes as hard and fast as Nick O’Flaherty had. It had just taken Kelly a while to recognize the signs when the body came in a slightly different shape than he was used to.

“God, Kels.” Nick shuddered and kissed his neck, pulling Kelly away from the wall just enough to wrap his arms around him. “I thought I screwed everything up that morning. You were staring at me like you didn’t even know who I was and I hated that I’d put that look on your face. I would’ve given almost anything to take that kiss back.”

Kelly was really glad he wouldn’t get that chance. “You never did tell me.”

“Tell you what?” 

“Why you kissed me.” 

“The way you looked at me…” Nick pulled back and placed his hands on Kelly’s cheeks, his touch gentle and almost reverential. “No one has ever looked at me like that. Like I was fascinating and special and I don’t even know. But you—you stared at me with those chameleon eyes of yours and I kept having to talk myself out of asking you out.”

Kelly tried to imagine how it would’ve gone if Nick had asked him out (or kissed him) that night. Honestly, not well if Kelly had to guess. Part of the reason Nick had stuck in his head that morning was because of how he’d left so fast. And Kelly hadn’t known Nick well enough yet to jump that mental wall telling him he was only into girls.

“Is that why you bolted that first night?”

“Yes.” 

“Hmm.” Kelly tilted his head slightly and kissed Nick’s palm. “Probably for the best, Irish. I would’ve decked you if you’d kissed me that night.”

“That’s okay.” He smiled down at Kelly. “I would’ve deserved it.”

Kelly leaned closer, head tilted for a kiss. Nick’s smile as he obeyed the silent request was nearly sublime and that right there made all the shit that came before it worthwhile.

“What now, Kels? What do you want?”

Heart picking up speed, Kelly grinned. There were so many ways to answer that question and Kelly couldn’t quite decide which one to use first. One thing he knew almost for sure was that he planned on keeping Irish around for a long, long time. This was one thing he didn’t think would ever be less than completely enthralling.

Had to be that Irish charm.


	9. Grand Announcements

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes when life changes drastically, you need some time to adjust.

They didn’t leave the dorm for the entire weekend. Surprisingly little of that time was spent naked, the rest was Kelly pelting Nick with question after question about his major and what he wanted to do with his life and why Ty was, well, Ty. He dug for every detail he could, but at the same time he didn’t press on things Nick was obviously sensitive about. Like his childhood. Kelly backed off those questions real quick, turned around, and didn’t try to drive down that road again.

Oddly enough, it made Nick want to tell him everything. He didn’t, not then, but for the first time in his life Nick thought that one day he might.

The whole weekend was insane and idyllic and impossible, but it convinced Nick of one thing for sure: he would give Kelly as much time as he needed to adapt. Kels had said himself that he’d never even been attracted to a guy before now. No fucking way was Nick going to shove him out the closet doors and demand they walk around holding hands and declaring themselves boyfriends. Even if that idea did sound oddly appealing. Which was weird because he’d been with Ty for a few years and not even they’d ever done anything that sappy.

Kelly was different, though. Everything about Kelly and with Kelly was different.

Monday morning, they woke up squished and intertwined on Kelly’s tiny twin bed. Nick was still blinking blearily but Kelly’s chin was resting on his chest and he was smiling up at Nick.

“Hi, Nicko.”

“It’s too early for you to be this happy,” Nick grumbled.

“It’s  _never_  too early to be happy.” Kelly shook his head, his chin digging into Nick’s ribs. “No such thing.”

Nick pet Kelly on the head like a puppy. “Whatever you say, babe.”

“That’s better.” Grinning, Kelly pressed a kiss to the hollow at the base of Nick’s throat. “I have to get dressed and get to class, but I’ll be starving by the time I get out. Want to meet me for lunch?”

Even as Nick nodded, he thought about having to sit by Kelly and keep his hands off Kelly and not smile at Kelly in the way he knew Kelly made him smile that would shout to the world “I AM SLEEPING WITH THIS GUY RIGHT HERE.” It would be torture.

But he smiled and kissed Kelly goodbye and walked back to his room and made plans. Plans to call in backup because no way was he going to make it through this alone.

***

“This is stupid, Lucky.” Ty shook his head as he propped his feet up on the bench next to Zane. “I don’t know how I feel about helping you keep this a secret.”

Nick ground his teeth together. “Yeah, well, leave then.”

“Doll.” Nick watched Zane shake his head as he placed a hand on Ty’s calf, stroking the skin there. It was weird to watch. Nick knew exactly what that skin felt like but he had no desire to touch it anymore. When he thought about it, the only thing he wished was that he had his hands on Kelly like that.

Ty sighed and settled into his chair, his arms crossed. “I just can’t believe he asked you to do this is all. I thought better of him than that.”

“He didn’t.”

Zane’s head tilted as he looked at Nick. “I hadn’t thought he would, but now I’m confused. We’re playing this game  _why_  exactly?”

“Because!” Nick groaned and rubbed a hand over his mouth, trying to calm down. “Because I need to give him time to adjust before I shove him into the spotlight on something he might not be ready to accept, okay?”

“Oh.” Ty nodded slowly, a little of the annoyance bleeding from his expression. “Yeah, okay. I get that. That’s…actually really thoughtful of you, O.”

“You say that like I’m usually an asshat.”

“No, but…” Ty shrugged. “You do tend to see things in black and white, man. This is a gray area you’re living in right now and it’s just kinda cool that you’re staying there for this guy.”

There’s a moment of silence and then Ty’s eyes narrow and he points a sharp finger at Nick.

“My opinion that this is a good move has a time limit, though. If he stretches this out and tries to keep this a secret indefinitely he will completely lose any good opinion I may have of him.”

Nick honestly, fervently hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

A backpack slammed into one of the empty chairs at their table and all three of them jumped.

“Be right back,” Kelly said as he made a beeline for the food.

“How romantic,” Ty drawled.

Nick shrugged. Kelly had already warned him he’d be starving by the time lunch hit since he’d had to skip breakfast. Smiling, Nick spent a few seconds remembering exactly  _why_  Kelly hadn’t had time for breakfast.

“I do  _not_  want to know what put that smile on your face.” Ty shook his head adamantly. “Nope, nope, nope.”

Zane rolled his eyes. “Don’t ask then, Ty.”

“Who says I’d tell you anyway?”

“Tell who what?” Kelly asked as he set an overflowing tray of food down.

Nick’s brain shorted out. Luckily Ty was quicker. “Whether or not he honestly thinks the Sox are going to beat the Yankees this year.”

“Not a chance.” Kelly’s reply was instant and unequivocal.

“You’re shitting me.” The words were out before Nick could stop them. “Please tell me you’re not a Yankees fan.”

This would be over before it started if Kelly followed those assholes.

Kelly smirked. “Why? Would that be a problem?”

“Oh, son," Ty murmured. "Wrong play.”

The rest of lunch was consumed by a debate over the merits of almost every other team in the league and how  _any_ of them—even the ones who hadn’t won a series  _ever_ —were more deserving of love than the Yankees. Less deserving than the Sox, of course, but still better than being a fucking Yank.

The debate carried through lunch and on the whole walk home and it wasn’t until Kelly dissolved into a fit of giggles on the floor of his dorm room that Nick realized that he might have been played.

“Man, I don’t even  _watch_  baseball!” Kelly managed to gasp.

“Idiot,” Nick muttered. “Whatever, asshole. You find me when you can breathe again.”

He turned around and suddenly had a Kelly plastered to his back. “It’s kind of crazy how hot you are when you start cursing out the entire Yankee franchise and everyone who has ever worn their colors.”

Nick turned around and pinned Kelly to the wall. Leaving wasn’t very important any more.

A little whisper in the back of his head wondered why Kelly’d waited until they were locked in his room to even touch him, though.

***

A week passed and Nick was careful to keep his distance in public, keeping one rule at the forefront of his mind: no touching unless Kelly did it first.

Kelly never did it first.

Another week passed same as the first.

Nick was starting to get uncomfortable. The hotter and heavier they got in private, the harder it was to keep from claiming Kelly in public. Even just a little. Holding his hand. Kissing him before he left for class. The longer it went on, the farther Nick had to keep himself from Kelly while they faced the world.

It was maddening.

A third week.

Finally Nick needed some time alone because, if he didn’t, something insignificant would happen and he would bite Kelly’s head off for it and fuck. He’d told himself he would give Kelly time but he hadn’t thought it would be this long. He really hadn’t.

Nick cancelled his plans with Kelly and closed himself in his room, marathoning shows he’d downloaded from The History Channel and eating pizza because no fucking way was he cooking today. It didn’t help his stress level that he had to ignore five texts and three calls from Kelly throughout the day. If he picked any of them up, it’d be over. He knew that. It was the only thing that kept him from answering, though, because he really wanted to hear Kelly’s voice.

Shit. What the hell was he supposed to do when the one thing in his life that could calm him down was the same thing that was messing him up?

He had about two seconds of warning—the sound of a key turning in his lock—before his dorm room door opened.

Kelly strode into the room, the scowl on his face almost as dark as the morning he put Nick on his knees. The door slammed shut behind him so hard Nick thought he might have heard it crack.

“What the fuck?”

“I think I’m the one who should be asking you that.” He seemed to tower over Nick as he stood by the side of the bed, arms crossed. “What the hell has been up with you?”

“Fucking hell, Kels. Nothing!” Nick pushed his laptop off his lap and shut it. “Is this really all this because of a couple of missed calls?”

“Fuck the calls,” Kelly growled. “This is about whatever the hell has been going on with you the last few weeks. The calls were just the last straw.”

Nick’s stomach plummeted. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“You know the first thing people say when someone brings up something they don’t want to admit?” Kelly asked, one eyebrow raised. “‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’”

“That doesn’t make it bullshit, Kelly!”

Eyes narrow, Kelly muttered something under his breath that Kelly couldn’t catch. “I’m talking about this Jekyll and Hyde shit you’ve been pulling!”

Nick sputtered, meaningless noises that he couldn’t force into words. “That’s not fair,” he finally managed to spit out.

“No. You’re right. It’s not.”

Somehow Nick didn’t think they were talking about the same thing.

“You know, in the beginning I thought it was just how you were. Didn’t like being touched in public.” Kelly lifted one hand and shrugged. “Whatever. People have their quirks and I was willing to go with it if it makes you happy.”

“What are you—”

Kelly glared and barreled right over him. “But then I noticed that you’re not like that with Ty. Or Zane. Or, fuck, just about  _anyone else_  and I started thinking you were being careful. Because it wasn’t like you had a problem touching me when we were alone, right? So it couldn’t be me.”

“I was just—”

“That’s where things got weirder. Because I tried to ease into it. Get close enough to just brush your hand and you know what you did?” Kelly planted his hands on his hips and Nick—wisely for once—held his tongue. “You fucking ran away, O’Flaherty! You ran away and then you cancelled plans and if this was just some experiment to turn the straight boy I’m going to knock you out and hang you by your ankles off the roof of the dorm I swear to fucking god!”

Kelly stood there like an avenging angel and all Nick could do was gape helplessly as the world crashed around him. Everything he’d thought about the last few weeks had obviously been wrong, but how the hell could he explain that to Kelly and would it even matter? Kelly looked  _pissed_  and rightfully so if everything he’d said was true.

Nick expected more yelling. That wasn’t what he got. The longer they stared at each other, the more the anger bled from Kelly’s face along with every drop of color.

“God dammit, Irish.” Kelly’s voice cracked and he dug the palm of his hand into the space between his eyes. “You’re the one who started this.  _You_  did. If you’d decided I wasn’t worth being seen in public with you should have fucking told me so. I expected better than this from you.”

Kelly turned away. Kelly was leaving. Kelly was  _leaving_.  _Kelly_  was leaving! Nick watched him take the first step and he knew, somehow knew with absolute certainty, that if he left Kelly walk out the door right now he’d never get to touch him again.

The thought acted like a catapult.

Nick shot out of bed and grabbed Kelly around the shoulders, spinning him around and holding him so tight he wasn’t sure if Kelly would be able to breathe.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I’m not ashamed of you, not at all, but I was trying to help, trying to give you time to adjust and maybe I went about it the wrong way but I’m sorry and I didn’t mean to and please just give me a chance to make it up to you because I can’t—”

“Nick?”

“Please, I’m sorry, Kels! I didn’t mean to—”

“Nick! Your Boston is coming out and I can’t understand a word you’re saying.”

Clamping his mouth shut and closing his eyes, Nick took a deep breath, still holding Kelly tight, and tried again.

“I was trying to give you time to adjust to everything, Kels. I didn’t want to force you out of the closet so I thought that if I let you set the pace in public it’d be easier.”

Kelly huffed and pushed Nick away. “How the fuck does that equal  _running away_ , you asshole?”

“Not touching you was driving me crazy, Kels! And when you did that I knew I had to leave or I was gonna grab you and slam you against the wall right there.”

A little of the light came back in Kelly’s eyes. “That would’ve caused a scene.”

“Exactly.”

Kelly smirked. “Might’ve been fun.”

Nick groaned and hauled Kelly back into his arms. “I’m sorry about running. I thought I was being thoughtful.”

“Okay, well, Nicko?”

“Yeah, Kels?”

“Next time think about telling me what the hell is going through that Irish brain of yours.”

Nick laughed, a helpless, breathless chuckle he couldn’t contain. “Promise.”

“Oblivious bastard,” Kelly muttered. But Nick could feel Kelly smiling against his neck.

“Sometimes, yeah.” Nick swallowed and forced himself to keep talking. “But I meant what I said Kelly.”

“Which part? Because you said some good things and some shit I still want to hit you for.”  

“The part about not forcing you into anything you’re not comfortable with. I can wait, Kels. As long—”

“You’re not really gonna start this shit again, are you?” Kelly groaned. “I thought we covered this.”

“It’s not the same. You think it’ll be easy, but it—”

“Oh my  _god_!” Kelly pulled away too fast for Nick to grab him, but it didn’t matter. Kelly’s hand closed around Nick’s wrist and dragged him along. “Talking really does  _nothing_  with you, does it?”

“What the hell, Kels?” Nick stumbled after Kelly until he stopped in the partially full lounge where some of the other guys from their floor were watching football.

“Hey, assholes!”

The guys watching the game looked up, their expressions somewhere between confusion and annoyance.

“I’m dating this one,” Kelly announced to the room, raising Nick’s captive arm like a prize fighter after winning a match. “Just so you know.”

“No shit, dude,” one of them says as the other three roll their eyes and go back to the game. “Taylor shares a wall with you, Kelly. You aren’t exactly quiet.”

“Well, that was unnecessarily dramatic.” Ty’s drawl pulled their attention to the doorway of the lounge.

“And yet somehow anticlimactic,” Zane said.

“That’s my boyfriend,” Kelly repeated, jabbing his finger into Nick’s ribs. “Just in case you missed that part.”

“Oh no, we caught it,” Ty said with a gleefully evil grin on his face. “Nick’s expression was  _priceless_. I am so glad we made it in time for that show.”

“Yeah?” Zane shrugged. “I’m just glad we didn’t have to go through with your other plan.”

Ty pursed his lips. “I still think locking them in a room together would be a good idea.”

Kelly’s free hand shot up. “I second that motion. I think it’s brilliant.” Without waiting for an opinion from Ty, Kelly turned and headed back for Nick’s room. “C’mon, Irish. You still have a lot of apologizing to do.”

“Oh hell no! No! That is not what I meant!” Ty shouted behind them. “Eww! Zane, did you  _hear_  that?”

Nick laughed and picked up his pace, beating Kelly to the room so he could be doubly sure the door locked behind them. 


End file.
